Accessibility links
Retail Retail
Stories About

Retail

Monday

Bed Bath & the great Beyond: How the home goods giant went bankrupt

Shoppers stand outside a Bed Bath & Beyond store in New Jersey. Julio Cortez/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Julio Cortez/AP

Business

Bed Bath & the great Beyond: How the home goods giant went bankrupt

The retailer once triumphed over rivals as a "category killer" with its blue coupons. Now, it's become rudderless, turbulent and broke. Here's what happened.

Bed Bath & the great Beyond: How the home goods giant went bankrupt

Listen · 4:08
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1152070914/1171570813" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Sunday

Homeware giant Bed Bath & Beyond has filed for bankruptcy

Bed Bath & Beyond has lost shoppers and money after a series of ineffective or mistimed turnaround attempts. It has also exhausted numerous financial lifelines. Shown here is a Bed Bath & Beyond store in Westbury, New York. Bruce Bennett/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Business

Homeware giant Bed Bath & Beyond has filed for bankruptcy

The retailer, which also owns the BuyBuy Baby chain, has lost shoppers and money after a series of ineffective or mistimed turnarounds. It plans to close stores.

Saturday

Big stores see how we spend. Here are 4 things they say about the economy

People shop at a mall in Houston. Brandon Bell/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Business

Big stores see how we spend. Here are 4 things they say about the economy

Retailers have dropped a flurry of financial reports. They paint a messy and conflicting picture about our consumer economy.

Big stores see how we spend. Here are 4 things they say about the economy

Listen · 3:42
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1160650221/1161297455" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Friday

Recession, retail, retaliation

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 15: Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Phillip Swagel speaks during a news briefing on the release of new economic reports at Ford House Office Building on February 15, 2023 in Washington, DC. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Alex Wong/Getty Images

The Indicator from Planet Money

Recession, retail, retaliation

Economic news of the week – from the government's new projections on unemployment and inflation to the latest retail spending numbers. Plus, what's the deal with companies retaliating against union organizers?

Recession, retail, retaliation

Listen · 7:51
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1158043424/1198987783" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

What tracking one Walmart store's prices for years taught us about the economy

People shop at Walmart on Black Friday 2022 in Dunwoody, Ga. Jessica McGowan/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Jessica McGowan/Getty Images

Analysis

Business

What tracking one Walmart store's prices for years taught us about the economy

Inside our shopping cart is a story of global trade, extreme weather, shrinking packages and rising prices.

What tracking one Walmart store's prices for years taught us about the economy

Listen · 4:04
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1147894382/1152917721" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Thursday

Thursday

These 7 charts show how life got pricier (and, yes, cheaper!) in 2022
Peter Dazeley/Getty Images

Your Money

These 7 charts show how life got pricier (and, yes, cheaper!) in 2022

Boy, have we talked a lot about inflation. It affected every part of our lives (and the economy) in 2022. Here are some of its highest highs and lowest lows. (It wasn't all bad news!)

These 7 charts show how life got pricier (and, yes, cheaper!) in 2022

Listen · 4:52
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1144157601/1146155302" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Thursday

Saturday

Here's how inflation is changing holiday deals and shopping

A shopper browses Black Friday sales at a Macy's store in Jersey City, N.J. Kena Betancur/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Kena Betancur/Getty Images

Business

Here's how inflation is changing holiday deals and shopping

Shoppers are expected to spend a record amount of money this year because nearly everything is more expensive. There are some relative bargains, if you know where to look.

Here's how inflation is changing holiday deals and shopping

Listen · 4:21
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1138711519/1139234364" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Friday

Thursday

Wednesday

Will Bed Bath & Beyond sink like Sears or rise like Best Buy?

Bed Bath & Beyond is working on yet another turnaround after a series of crises and missteps. Bruce Bennett/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Business

Will Bed Bath & Beyond sink like Sears or rise like Best Buy?

The company has been on a rollercoaster of crises, including a meme-stock rise and crash. Its latest financial report comes Thursday.

Will Bed Bath & Beyond sink like Sears or rise like Best Buy?

Listen · 4:01
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1125183855/1125525903" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

A deal to avert a rail strike is on track, but it won't fix U.S. supply chain issues

A tentative deal announced Thursday would avert a strike on the nation's freight lines with the potential to throw supply chains into chaos. Above, a CSX freight train travels through Alexandria, Va. Kevin Wolf/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Kevin Wolf/AP

National

A deal to avert a rail strike is on track, but it won't fix U.S. supply chain issues

Supply chain disruptions have eased since the height of the pandemic, but concern over a potential rail strike, which appears to have been narrowly averted, highlights how that system remains fragile.

Thursday

Wednesday

Binders, backpacks... and inflation are on this year's back-to-school shopping list

People shop for school supplies at a Target store in Miami, Fla., on July 27. Marta Lavandier/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Marta Lavandier/AP

America In The Grip Of Inflation

Binders, backpacks... and inflation are on this year's back-to-school shopping list

This year's back-to-school shopping season lands in the middle of the highest inflation in four decades — how will this affect spending?

Binders, backpacks... and inflation are on this year's back-to-school shopping list

Listen · 3:42
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1114582432/1115347230" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript