When Marcus Lemonis took over running what was then called Beyond Inc. in December 2023, he preached an “asset-light” model, which is business speak for not owning stuff in the real world—especially stores. Well, guess what? Two years later, he will own more than 300 of them, as well as all the inventory associated with those locations and a payroll that includes hundreds of retail employees. It’s only the latest twist in what has become an incredibly convoluted path for the company—now called Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.—that will make for a fascinating Harvard Business School case study someday.

The new (and decidedly not light) assets come courtesy of the company’s just-announced acquisition of The Brand House Collective, a furniture and decor chain that used to be known as Kirkland’s. The $

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