According to published reports, Bed Bath & Beyond is preparing a membership and loyalty program that offers a 20% discount and free shipping for a $29.99 fee.
The retailer will offer the program to customers who spend more than $145 annually with the company.
Bed Bath & Beyond has been revisiting its market strategy and executives have noted that they want to do more Internet-based marketing and to become less reliant on traditional coupon mailings.
In the company’s second quarter conference call last month, Bed Bath & Beyond maintained that it attributed lower gross margin percentage to a decrease in merchandise margin and an increase in coupon expense due to higher redemptions, partially offset by a slight decrease in the average coupon amount.
Steven Temares, Bed Bath & Beyond CEO, noted in the conference call that the company already has taken steps to change how promotions are delivered to customers. The company has rolled out and worked for the adoption of its digital My Offers program among customers. Bed Bath & Beyond and buybuy Baby customers already can use the virtual coupon wallet.
Coupons are an important part of Bed Bath & Beyond’s value proposition, but “we’re committed as an organization to smarter, more intelligent marketing, personalized, targeted, being more meaningful and being more efficient and optimizing that over time as well,” Temares said.
