Cost Plus Inc., a chain retailer with ambitious plans to grow e-commerce, is slated for new ownership.
Cost Plus, No. 390 in the 2012 Internet Retailer Top 500 has accepted a tentative deal to be acquired by Bed, Bath & Beyond Inc. (No. 189 in the Top 500) for about $495 million.
Under the terms of the deal, Bed, Bath & Beyond will purchase all outstanding shares of Cost Plus common stock for about $22 per share. The two largest shareholders include investment banking firms Red Mountain Capital Partners LLC and Stephens Investment Holdings LLC, which collectively own about 26% of Cost Plus, the retailer says.
The board of directors for each company has approved the deal, which is expected to close by the end of June. “Our successful merchandising and product collaborations over the last two years have demonstrated that our organizations work well together and that we can make key contributions to the continued success of the combined company,” says Cost Plus CEO Barry Feld.
When the deal is complete, Bed, Bath & Beyond will have acquired a company with a growing appetite for e-commerce.
Cost Plus is making plans to generate annual web sales of about $100 million by 2017. “We have the ability to increase our e-commerce business to $100-plus million during the next three to five years,” Feld told Wall Street analysts on the company’s recent year-end earnings call. “Our e-commerce model is profitable.”
For the year ended Jan. 28, Cost Plus reported:
- An increase in e-commerce revenue of about 53.8% to $26 million from $16.9 million in 2010.
- Total sales of $963.8 million, up about 5.2% from total sales of $916.6 million.
- Net income increased year over year about 469% to $16.5 million from $2.9 million in 2010.
- The retailer didn’t disclose a figure for comparable-store sales.
The web accounted for 2.7% of total sales, compared with 1.8% in 2010.
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