BuyBuy Baby’s brick-and-mortar stores are likely to go out of business after no buyers came forward last week with bids to continue operating the brand as a going concern, court documents indicate. The auction was canceled after no bids were received.
However, BuyBuy Baby’s brand is likely to remain a going concern after a vendor, New Jersey-based Dream On Me, won the auction for the brand’s intellectual property. A court hearing to approve that sale is set for July 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey.
BuyBuy Baby, which sells apparel, furniture and bedding, is part of parent company Bed Bath & Beyond, which filed for Chapter 11 in April. Online retailer Overstock bought Bed Bath & Beyond’s intellectual property, including its mobile platforms, business data and trademarks.
Overstock paid $21.5 million for Bed Bath & Beyond’s IP. However, as of Friday, none of the publicly available court documents indicated how much Dream On Me offered to pay for BuyBuy Baby’s IP.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s attorneys did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment from Retail Dive seeking more information about Dream On Me’s bid for the IP and the next steps after canceling the going concern auction after no buyers came forward. Dream On Me, which lists a portfolio of six brands on its website, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.
As parent Bed Bath & Beyond has proceeded through bankruptcy, the company has taken a piecemeal approach in separating and selling its assets in an effort to get the most value. The company has sold the IP and physical properties of its remaining brands separately. But so far, no buyers have emerged for the stores.
At the time of its April bankruptcy filing, BuyBuy Baby had about 120 locations and there were about 760 Bed Bath & Beyond locations. Before filing for Chapter 11, Bed Bath & Beyond also closed its 65-store business in Canada, and Harmon, a U.S.-based 50-store beauty products chain.