Bed Bath & Beyond wants those old coupons back — and one could be worth far more than 20% off

The revived home-goods retailer is asking shoppers to dig out old Bed Bath & Beyond coupons, even expired ones. The company says the famous blue 20% off coupons will be honored at participating stores during a 21-day promotion.

Bed Bath & Beyond, the once-bankrupt home-goods chain whose blue-and-white 20% off coupons became a fixture of kitchen drawers, glove compartments and junk-mail piles, is bringing the coupons back.

The company has launched what it calls the “Legendary Coupon Hunt,” a 21-day campaign running from June 22 through July 13. Customers are being invited to bring old Bed Bath & Beyond coupons — expired, faded or decades old — to participating Bed Bath & Beyond + The Container Store and Kirkland’s Home locations.

The coupons will be honored at face value, generally 20% off, and can also serve as entries in a sweepstakes. The grand prize is a $100,000 home transformation. The company says other prizes include 100 $500 gift cards and 50 $100 gift cards.

The promotion is an unusually direct appeal to consumer nostalgia. For years, Bed Bath & Beyond trained shoppers to expect a coupon. Many consumers held onto the mailers long after their printed expiration dates, partly because the old chain had a reputation for accepting them anyway.

Now, the new Bed Bath & Beyond is turning that habit into a marketing event.

“For decades, our customers treated these coupons like treasure,” Amy Sullivan, president of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., said in the company’s announcement. “They tucked them into purses, filing cabinets, cookbooks and memory boxes because they believed they would be valuable someday. We think they were right.”

A coupon campaign with a comeback message

The promotion comes as Bed Bath & Beyond tries to rebuild a physical retail presence after the original chain collapsed into bankruptcy and closed its stores in 2023.

The brand has since been relaunched under new ownership and has been reshaped around a broader “Everything Home” strategy. That strategy now includes online retail, store partnerships, home organization, home services and even real estate-related services.

The company has been moving quickly. It has announced a rollout of Bed Bath & Beyond + The Container Store locations, beginning with 22 launch markets and more conversions expected. The format combines Bed Bath & Beyond’s bedding, bath, kitchen and home goods assortment with The Container Store’s organization and custom-space services.

Separately, Kirkland’s has been rebranded as The Brand House Collective, with plans to convert some existing Kirkland’s Home stores into Bed Bath & Beyond Home locations. The company has also announced deals involving The Container Store, Cabinets To Go parent F9 Brands and real estate services platform Fathom Holdings.

In short, the coupon campaign is not just a coupon campaign. It is a way to remind shoppers that Bed Bath & Beyond still exists — and that the new version wants to be seen as more than an online retailer.

Why the old coupon mattered

The old 20% off coupon was one of the best-known marketing tools in American retail. It helped drive traffic, encouraged repeat visits and became part of the chain’s identity.

But the coupon also reflected one of the company’s old problems: shoppers came to expect a discount. That made it harder to sell goods at full price and contributed to the perception that Bed Bath & Beyond was always on sale.

For consumers, though, the coupon was simple. It was easy to understand, easy to save and often useful. That is why the new campaign may work. It gives shoppers a reason to visit a store and rewards those who still have a physical reminder of the old brand.

It also gives the company a relatively low-cost way to generate attention. Instead of asking consumers to learn a new loyalty program or download another app, Bed Bath & Beyond is asking them to search a drawer.

What consumers should know

Consumers who still have old coupons may be able to use them during the promotion at participating locations. But they should check the rules before making a special trip.

Key questions include:

Is the store participating?
The promotion applies to participating Bed Bath & Beyond + The Container Store and Kirkland’s Home locations, not necessarily every store a consumer might associate with the brand.

Can the coupon be used on any item?
Retail coupons often exclude some brands, sale items, services, gift cards or other categories. Consumers should check store terms before assuming the coupon applies to everything.

Is the sweepstakes free to enter?
Legitimate sweepstakes must not require a purchase to enter or improve the odds of winning. Consumers should look for the official rules and any no-purchase entry option.

What are the odds?
A $100,000 home transformation sounds attractive, but the odds depend on the number of entries. As with any sweepstakes, the discount may be more valuable to most consumers than the chance of winning the grand prize.

Could personal information be used for marketing?
Sweepstakes entries often require contact information. Consumers should expect follow-up marketing and should read the privacy terms before entering.

Are there taxes?
Large prizes can have tax consequences. A $100,000 prize may be exciting, but winners should understand whether they will receive taxable income reporting and whether cash is offered instead of products or services.

Watch out for copycat scams

High-profile sweepstakes can attract scammers. Consumers should be cautious of texts, emails or social media messages claiming they have won a Bed Bath & Beyond prize.

The Federal Trade Commission warns that real sweepstakes do not require winners to pay fees, taxes, shipping charges or “processing” costs upfront to claim a prize. A request to pay by gift card, payment app, wire transfer, cryptocurrency or cash is a major red flag.

Consumers should also avoid clicking links in unsolicited messages. The safest approach is to go directly to the company’s official sweepstakes page or ask in person at a participating store.

The bottom line

For shoppers, this is a rare case where that old coupon in the junk drawer may actually be useful.

For Bed Bath & Beyond, it is a clever attempt to turn a symbol of the old chain into a bridge to the new one. The company is betting that consumers who remember the coupon will also give the relaunched stores a look.

Just don’t confuse a fun promotion with a sure thing. The coupon may be worth 20% off. The sweepstakes is still a game of chance.