Bed, Bath and Beyond Plans Store Closings as Layoffs Loom
It is a sad day for some Bed, Bath and Beyond customers.
Bed, Bath and Beyond announced they will be closing around 150 stores. The company plans to cut around 20% of corporate supply-chain staff. This is all part of their plan to reduce costs by $250 million this year.
According to Yahoo, “sales in the second quarter had slumped roughly 26% compared to the same period in 2021.”
Mere days after the company announced the closings, then-CFO Gustavo Arnal fell from a New York City building. The city’s medical examiner declared that he died by suicide.
Tragically, colleagues of Arnal noticed he had been overwhelmed and stressed. The Journal reported that he considered taking a break, the stress and 18-hour workdays proving to be too much.
A friend and former co-worker, Jan Zijderveld, explained that Arnal was “the sort of guy who carries the world on his shoulders” and he always had a positive attitude and chose not to disclose much about the challenges he faced at work.
Arnal has been replaced by Laura Crossen who was formerly the company’s senior vice president of finance and chief accounting officer.
My thoughts are certainly with Arnal’s family and everyone who knew and loved him.
If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or suicidal thoughts, get help. Call or text 988 to be connected to trained counselors that are part of the Lifeline network. These trained counselors will listen, understand how their problems are affecting them, provide support, and connect them to resources if necessary. The previous Lifeline phone number (1-800-273-8255) will always remain available to people in emotional distress or suicidal crisis. Help is also available through the Crisis Text Line — just text “HOME” to 741741.
