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njdba t1_j3f05bx wrote

Did it to themselves. They are crazy expensive without coupons so people only shop there when they have a coupon.

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SleepyHobo t1_j3fr61z wrote

Their membership program is amazing if you're just starting out in life and in your 1st place. I signed up for their membership and got unlimited 20% off your entire order coupons and a single 30% off entire order coupon when you sign up.

Sometimes the membership is worth it alone just to buy 1 expensive item. I recently bought an 8-piece All Clad D3 cookware set that retails for $645 (which is already at a steep discount compared to competitors) for $450. The stock pot alone is $350 at stores other than BBB. Plus BBB offered a free All Clad D3 oven roaster if you bought the set! So the $29 membership essentially netted me hundreds of dollars in discounts.

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OkBid1535 t1_j3gd4xg wrote

As an owner of all clad pots and I just replaced the 2qt one…over $300 at Williams Sonoma! Yeah you definitely got an amazing deal on that cookware for sure! That alone makes me want to sign up for the membership ha

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YukiHase t1_j3f1bdr wrote

Anytime I walk in one, it's a ghost town. And it's not a mystery either... There's barely anything worth buying, and whatever is you can get cheaper elsewhere

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Linenoise77 t1_j3f5j8k wrote

They, and linens n things, used to be solid stores. Now everything in them is basically "as seen on tv" junk.

I went in there looking for a good filet knife that matched the set of Henkles I had, and all they had was the cheap ass chinese steel versions. Figured, well, i'm here, we need a new coffee maker, and same thing, was all cheap crap or gimicky ones.

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Superfool t1_j3f7mtk wrote

Yeah, I used to absolutely love their selection of cooking utensils. Literal walls of great stuff to choose from. Now they have less of a selection than and similar quality to what you find at Walmart. Pretty sad.

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ClaymoreMine t1_j3h3nrk wrote

They vertically integrated their stores inventory so instead of being a “department” store it’s all their garbage.

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dirtynj t1_j3f7ykp wrote

I used to go there quite a bit. Then their prices went crazy and their selection turned gimmicky.

But honestly, most of their store doesn't need a physical presence.

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Linenoise77 t1_j3fl6cy wrote

Cooking stuff is one of those things that i like to actually get hands on before buying. If i want a new frying pan or the like, i want to be able to take a swing with it like i'm braining someone. Not buy half a dozen online, only to send 5 back, or spend an entire saturday going to 4 different specialty cooking stores because they each only carry a brand or two of good stuff.

Same story with knives, grill stuff, etc.

Hell, even something relatively simple like every day sheets for the guest room or pillows, is absolute crap at bed bath now.

I sort of get how they found themsleves in this boat, because for a lot of that stuff, a middle ground no longer exists. Its like a couch or a major appliance. You can get a 1k one that might last you a few years, or get a 10k one that will last the better part of your life. Nothing really exists in between if you are willing to put an investment into it, but can't cut the check for top of the line.

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joedonut t1_j3grpfl wrote

> sheets

Who's your go-to for sheets currently?

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Linenoise77 t1_j3gtgbx wrote

I honestly couldn't tell you, more the wife's department these days. In my single days though i was a fan of the Hotel Collection stuff that macy's sells (or sold). They felt good, held up really well, and were moderately priced.

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hip_drive t1_j3fevct wrote

The store in Springfield is a converted roller rink, and you can tell—the floors are all slanted. However, that is the only thing I’ll miss if they go out of business.

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seriously_wtf t1_j3fmyaw wrote

Isn't the one in Springfield also the original?

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hip_drive t1_j3frbmm wrote

Huh! According to Wikipedia, it is. That's pretty interesting.

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lost_in_life_34 t1_j3fbb2v wrote

I’ve hated their stores for years because of that fake chemical fragrance they pump into their AC system

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srddave t1_j3ffhw7 wrote

The BB&B stores lack any sort of online, digital, multi-channel strategy so I am not surprised but please, please don’t close Harmons!!

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ChefMike1407 t1_j3f7thp wrote

I worked part time for Nespresso doing demos the past two holiday seasons and I hated doing demonstrations in BB&B. The prices on most items were at least 20% higher than other competitors and people realized that. Shoppers always needed help and it was nearly impossible finding someone. The stock situation was weird- some stores had an abundance of some items, while a store a few towns over had opposite stock.

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Sonicfan42069666 t1_j3gobe7 wrote

> Shoppers always needed help and it was nearly impossible finding someone

This seems to be the case everywhere for the last 2-3 years. Companies are severely understaffed and we are seeing the strategy of big box retailers buying giant warehouse spaces but only staffing the bare minimum staff per shift at bare minimum wage come home to roost. Unfortunately, it's consumers who suffer, not the corporations.

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ChefMike1407 t1_j3hging wrote

Yeah. Plus a dedicated amount of staff are filling online orders or curbside pick up and they are unable to help.

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Sonicfan42069666 t1_j3hgv6d wrote

This is a huge issue I've observed at food service places. People standing around waiting to be served and then a doordash worker walks in, skips the line, and walks out with a massive bag that held everyone else's orders up. At least the food service sector seems to be actively working to solve/alleviate this issue.

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jawnbaejaeger t1_j3g3xps wrote

Well, maybe if everything there wasn't so fucking expensive - when I can get the same bathmat at Target for significantly less - they wouldn't be having this problem now, would they?

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new_tanker t1_j3fcfl0 wrote

I've been in two stores in my lifetime... one was Marlton and the other the one in Mt. Laurel, and both times I felt severely claustrophobic inside. Didn't buy a damn thing in there because of that, and the prices were nowhere near what I would have spent, coupon or not.

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milespudgehalter t1_j3homa0 wrote

They can't compete with Target / Walmart / Kohls / Ikea / At Home for cheap stuff, and their inventory isn't high end enough to compete with higher end stores. So many stores sell home goods, linens, storage, and small appliances that they're basically redundant in the market.

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Jimmytowne t1_j3gssk3 wrote

Last time I was in BB&B it looked more like a showroom than a store. Less selection and couldn’t find what I was looking for

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BackInNJAgain t1_j3hihst wrote

Their business model is terrible. Jack up prices on everything then periodically send people a 20% off coupon so they'll actually maybe buy something.

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vey323 t1_j3mxnxq wrote

Like most brick & mortar stores, they just cannot compete with online sales. BB&B doesn't offer anything that you can't get on Amazon or other online retailers, and on top of that they also have a pretty high mark-up on their offerings.

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mcgeggy t1_j3gyhht wrote

I used to shop fairly regularly at the one in my town, it was right next to my gym. Then they closed it. I’m not going to drive to another town to go to one, I’ll just buy those things elsewhere…

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Cerebralbore t1_j3n7tzj wrote

I've gone ton BB&B a handful of times but rarely got anything unless it was a gift for someone. I got. My sodastream and instapot there during a black Friday but that's it. Whenever I after that though I'd be on my phone price comparing with Amazon or target.

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