2 Bed Bath & Beyond Stores Closing In NJ

NEW JERSEY – A popular retail home store with locations in the United States and beyond is closing two stores in New Jersey.

Bed Bath & Beyond is closing a store in North Jersey and another in South Jersey. The closings will take place this year.

Jessica Joyce, a spokeswoman for the Union-based company, said the Newton and Turnersville locations will close as the store is "continually evolving to serve our loyal Bed Bath & Beyond customers better."

"We are also closing a limited number of stores that no longer meet the standards our customers expect from us, including our Newton location iand our Turnersville location in Sewell," she said.

Joyce said the company is also giving its most popular stores a multi-million dollar facelift and continually investing in its digital platform "to give customers an even better shopping experience in store or at home," she said.

The news comes months after the store announced that it planned to layoff 80 people by Nov. 15, 2019 in Union. A September letter to shareholders from the interim CEO Mary A. Winston and the chairman of the board of directors, Patrick R. Gaston, said a rapid refresh of 160 Bed Bath & Beyond locations was underway.

"Our objectives are to accelerate improvement in our financial performance, enhance our competitive positioning and ensure we have a best-in-class governance structure," the letter said.

These are the New Jersey stores that are expected to remain open:

• Aberdeen
• Brick
• Bridgewater
• Cherry Hill
• Clifton
• Deptford
• East Hanover
• Eatontown
• Edgewater
• Elizabeth
• Flanders
• Flemington
• Hamilton
• Howell
• Iselin
• Jersey City
• Kinnelon
• Lawrenceville
• Manahawkin
• Manalapan
• Marlton
• Mays Landing
• Middletown
• Mount Laurel
• North Brunswick
• Paramus
• Ramsey
• Rio Grande
• Rockaway
• Springfield
• Toms River
• Totowa
• Watchung

The company will also shed itself of up to $1 billion in inventory over the next year, the letter says. Any excess or aged inventory was expected to be taken off store shelves before the 2019 holiday season.

"As we continue to work toward executing on our business transformation, we remain confident in the strength of our brand and the future of Bed Bath & Beyond," the executives said in the letter.

"Our focus on putting the customer at the center of our transformation, supported by data and insights, is intended to restore Bed Bath & Beyond to its iconic status and improve the company's competitive position."