Bed Bath & Beyond in Wilmette to close as retailer shuts down locations nationwide

Wilmette’s Bed Bath & Beyond will be closing as the financially-troubled retailer is paring down operations nationwide.

On Jan. 30, Bed Bath & Beyond — known for the home merchandise company — announced 87 store closures across the country. Included in that list was the Wilmette location at Edens Plaza on the 3200 block of Lake Avenue. In January, the company reported a 33% decline in sales in the third quarter of Fiscal Year 2022.

A company spokeswoman did not provide a specific closing date for the Wilmette store.

“Store closing sales will commence and continue over the next few weeks and months,” a company spokesperson wrote in an email.

Edens Plaza was purchased by Massachusetts-based WS Development last year. In conjunction with the purchase, the e-commerce retailer Wayfair — which sells similar goods to Bed Bath & Beyond — is scheduled to open its first brick-and-mortar store next year in the former Carson, Pirie, Scott building.

“At each of our properties, we strive to build strong relationships with our tenants and offer support to help them achieve success,” a WS Development spokesperson wrote in a statement. “We are sad to see Bed Bath & Beyond go at Edens Plaza, but are actively exploring new concepts to introduce to the community, including welcoming Wayfair next year. We look forward to growing alongside the Wilmette community and are excited for what’s to come.”

Wilmette Village Manager Mike Braiman was not surprised by the Bed Bath & Beyond announcement.

“We’ve anticipated for several years this location was going to close given their challenges nationally and also upon Wayfair coming to Edens Plaza,” Braiman said.

He believed the Bed Bath & Beyond store opened in the mid-1990s.

“This provides WS Development flexibility to implement their vision, which is going to improve the tenant mix and make Edens Plaza a more attractive destination for our residents and businesses moving forward,” Braiman said.

The WS Development spokesperson did not offer any specifics on what type of retailer they would like to see in the approximate 33,000-square foot space.

Braiman said the village does not have a preference in terms of a store.

“We have complete confidence that WS Development will find the right tenants to make it a strong and vibrant center when they are partnered with Wayfair,” he said.

Besides Wilmette, Bed, bath & Beyond also plans to close locations in Crystal Lake, Chicago Ridge, Forest Park and Geneva, according to a list on the company’s website.

A representative from Bed Bath & Beyond did not respond to questions regarding the future of other Chicago-area locations in Skokie, Vernon Hills and Deerfield.

Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter with Pioneer Press.