Bed Bath & Beyond is back in California after vowing never to return

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

Bed Bath & Beyond is coming back to California less than a year after the company’s chairman vowed it wouldn’t reopen in the Golden State.The home goods retailer will resurface through the rebranding of 98 The Container Store locations, including 12 storefronts in California, the company announced Thursday.Five locations are in Southern California, including one in Los Angeles and another in El Segundo.

The stores will be called “The Container Store + Bed Bath & Beyond,” offering both organizational products and home merchandise.The transition will start on Friday and involve liquidating 30% of The Container Store’s categories and products.

The store formats will start changing in May.“This is a reset with purpose,” Jen Pape, senior vice president of The Container Store, said in the release.

“We are actively reshaping our stores to make room for what’s next.”Bed Bath & Beyond once had 80 locations in strip malls and shopping centers across California, but shuttered all storefronts after filing for bankruptcy in 2023.The retailer’s executive chairman, Marcus Lemonis, said in August that the state is over-regulated, expensive and creates a risky business environment.

Lemonis joined a slew of business executives to denounce California’s business environment.Many executives, small-business owners and entrepreneurs complain about the state’s high taxes and cost of living, which, coupled with strict environmental regulations, can hinder business operations.Lemonis, a regular on Fox Business Network, said the decision to forgo business in California wasn’t political, but rather a move to protect employees and customers.

“It’s a system that makes it harder to employ people, harder to keep doors open, and harder to deliver value to customers,” Lemonis wrote in a statement on X in August.At the time, Gov.

Gavin Newsom fired back at Lemonis...