Home furnishings site One Kings Lane has found a home of its own, with Bed Bath & Beyond. The retailer announced a cash acquisition of the e-commerce startup, but the price was not disclosed.
Bed Bath & Beyond is a public company, so that means it needs to announce acquisition prices if the purchase is considered material. That could be up to about 15% of the company’s $6.5 billion market cap.
But as Dan Primack pointed out on Twitter, Bed Bath & Beyond had under $600 million in cash (closer to $500m) as of its last earnings. This suggests that the purchase price was substantially lower than One Kings Lane last valuation of its previous valuation above $912 million.
There was already talk that One Kings Lane could sell for as low as $150 million. Considering the company has raised at least $225 million, this is a very disappointing outcome for investors, which include Kleiner Perkins and Greylock.
The One Kings Lane acquisition draws similarities to Gilt, which was acquired by Saks Fifth Avenue owner, Hudson Bay, earlier this year. Both are e-commerce sites that gained traction with consumers when “flash sale” sites were more popular. But significant competition made it difficult to raise prices.
“We are excited to be part of the Bed Bath & Beyond family,” said Dinesh Lathi, Chief Executive Officer of One Kings Lane, in a statement. “This is a tremendous opportunity for our customers, as well as our employees and business partners, to benefit from additional support and resources and gain exposure to new customers. We look forward to being able to continue to differentiate our product offerings and refine our point of view to further delight our current and future customers.”
It is unclear how closely San Francisco-based One Kings Lane will be integrated into the Bed Bath & Beyond brand. According to a statement from Bed Bath & Beyond CEO Steven Tamares, “One Kings Lane will serve as a cornerstone for Bed Bath & Beyond’s growing offerings in furniture and home décor, and together we will be able to do even more for and with our collective customers wherever, whenever and however they wish to interact with us, and to further our mission to be viewed as the expert for the home.”
The deal occurred during the second quarter of the year, and it is possible that we will get some more clarity around the purchase price when Bed Bath & Beyond reports earnings in July.