Bed Bath & Beyond, Pier 1 Imports Closing More Stores

Days after Forever 21 announced they were filing for bankruptcy, closing nearly 180 stores, two more major retailers are following suit, both with stores in central New York.

Bed Bath & Beyond and Pier 1 Imports are the latest to suffer from declining sales.

Bed Bath & Beyond

Bed Bath & Beyond plans to close 60 stores this year, up 20 from the 40 stores announced in April. Most will close after the Christmas shopping season to “create a better balance between our physical and digital presence within the markets we serve,” CEO Mary Winston said during a quarterly earnings call this week.

No word on if the latest closures will affect the New Hartford location in Consumer Square. Bed Bath & Beyond also has several New York locations, including in Dewitt, Saratoga Springs, Watertown, Albany, Glenmont, Rochester, Canandaigua and Buffalo.

Pier 1 Imports

Pier 1 Imports plans to close at least 70 stores with more possible after suffering over a million dollars in lost revenue during the second quarter. “If we are unable to achieve our performance goals, sales targets and reductions in occupancy and other costs, we could close up to 15% of our portfolio," CEO Cheryl Bachelder said during conference call.

Pier 1 operates over 950 stores and 15% would mean more than 140 closures. There are locations in New Hartford, Clay, Syracuse, Saratoga Springs, Albany, Rochester, Ithaca and Buffalo. No word on which stores will be affected.

Forever 21

Forever 21 plans to close 178 stores after filing for bankruptcy this week. The Sangertown Square Mall and Destiny USA locations are on the chopping block.

“We expect a significant number of these stores will remain open and operate as usual,” the company said in a statement.