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Bed Bath & Beyond

Batavia Bed Bath & Beyond to close its doors, no word on when

By Billie Owens

The store manager at Bed Bath & Beyond in Towne Center at Batavia confirmed this afternoon that the store is closing, but says there is no firm date yet.

The store's lease with mall owner COR Development Co. LLC expired, and either more favorable terms could not be negotiated or the decision was made to outright pull the plug on the store once the current lease expired.

The closure is not altogether unexpected given slumping stock performance for the New Jersey-based chain of home-goods stores, hard hit by online sales competition.

According to market analysts, BBB stock has declined 55 percent in the last year and 74 percent in the last five years.

The company is still profitable, but financial experts say it is not closing brick-and-mortar stores fast enough to continue competing online.

Company executives in 2018 forecasts talked of closing more than three dozen locations nationwide, while opening more Buy, Buy Baby and Cost Plus World Market stores, which are also owned by the parent company.

Analysts say a big issue for BBB is that it stocks a lot of nationally branded commodity items that can be found elsewhere, like Amazon, for less, even with BBB's ubiquitous 20-percent off coupons and oftentimes free shipping.

What has long been a strong suit of Bed, Bath & Beyond, its peerless in-store customer service -- on par with the likes of world-class Nordstrom -- will be missed by many shoppers who experienced it firsthand.

BBB has a reputation for running a tight ship. Straightaway, new hires are taught the acronym GOT A PEN, which codifies their customer-service ethos:

  • Greet the customer;
  • Offer them a cart;
  • Thank the customer at the register when they make a purchase and invite them back;
  • Always wear your name badge;
  • Pass the buck -- if you don't have the answer to a customer's questions, find someone who does;
  • Escort the customer to find an item (don't just point and say "It's down that aisle.");
  • Never say the word "no" (find a solution that satifies the customer).

Investigator seeks public's help in IDing witnesses in possible Bed, Bath & Beyond arson

By Howard B. Owens

It appears -- though not certain at this stage of the ongoing investigation -- that the fire that heavily damaged Bed, Bath & Beyond's store in Batavia in January was deliberately set, according to Investigator Kris Kautz, of the Sheriff's Office.

Kautz is requesting the public's help in identifying people who were in the store that day so they can be interviewed. He's looking to identify the four people in these photos because he would like to talk with them.

None of the four are considered suspects.

In fact, the Sheriff's Office has a person of interest in the case, but still needs to gather more evidence.

"We have no proof of his actions, if in fact he's involved at all," Kautz said, "but there is an individual in video footage who appears consistent with a known individual we are looking at."

Kautz acknowledges these four pictures are low quality, but it's all he has to work with. They are still photos shot of a video monitor screen.

Sometimes people can recall things that seem unimportant to them, but would be important to the case.

"Any of these people might remember this or that or they can say 'I saw a guy,' " Kautz said. "You never know. This is a fishing trip as we call it in the business. Sometimes people know stuff they don't know is important. Sometimes all they need is a little prodding to know what they know."

The retail store in Batavia Towne Center has been closed for months and officials say it will be a long time yet before it reopens.

Investigator Kautz can be reached by calling the Sheriff's Office at (585) 343-5000. He's hoping people who recognize themselves will call him, or perhaps a friend, neighbor or relative might recognize somebody and provide Kautz with the identity.

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