Bed Bath & Beyond Collapse Celebrated by MAGA: 'Go Woke Go Broke'

The collapse of retailer Bed Bath & Beyond has been celebrated by MAGA Republicans who claimed its downfall was a result of it going "woke" after "canceling" MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell.

On Sunday, the chain of 360 stores across North America filed for bankruptcy with a U.S. District Court in New Jersey, and will start winding down its operations. The company said closing sales would begin on Wednesday and stores would continue to serve customers while it seeks buyers for the company's assets.

Despite declining fortunes in recent years, as it battled to retain a share of a retail market that has become dominated by home delivery, some have argued that its decision to drop Lindell's products over his claims about the 2020 election had seen customers walk out on the brand.

In 2021, Bed Bath & Beyond stopped selling MyPillow products after Lindell, an ally of former President Donald Trump, added his voice to claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. In a since-deleted tweet, posted two days after the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, he described the 2020 vote as "the biggest election fraud in history."

Lindell also took to conservative news channel Newsmax to describe the protests as "very peaceful" and claimed: "Donald Trump will be our president for the next four years." No evidence of election fraud has officially been found, and Joe Biden was shortly after sworn in as the 46th president.

According to CNN, Lindell has said that he believed some retailers, including Bed Bath & Beyond, stopped selling his product because they were "scared" by "leftist groups." The company said in a statement at the time that MyPillow had been among a "number of underperforming items and brands."

More than two years later, though, Bed Bath & Beyond met the fate of its own underperformance. The company said its bankruptcy filing came despite initiating a "significant turnaround plan" in late 2022 to improve its range of merchandise and streamline its supply chain.

"We deeply appreciate our associates, customers, partners, and the communities we serve, and we remain steadfastly determined to serve them throughout this process," CEO Sue Gove said in a statement. "We will continue working diligently to maximize value for the benefit of all stakeholders."

However, others had a different explanation for Bed Bath & Beyond's financial woes. "GO WOKE GO BROKE," wrote one person, who described themselves as "ULTRAMAGA," adding: "Two years after canceling Mike Lindell Bed Bath & Beyond files for bankruptcy."

"Woke Bed, Bath & Beyond canceled Mike Lindell's MyPillow, so Conservatives boycotted them," tweeted another, who said they "stand with President Trump." They also said: "Our money is our voice. Go woke go broke."

"Some of the funniest posts this morning are MAGA [Republicans] saying Bed, Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy because they stopped carrying Mike Lindell's pillows," said Ron Filipkowski, a former federal prosecutor and commentator. "Amazon has been killing them for years, and they have been hemorrhaging gobs of cash since 2018."

Newsweek reached out to Lindell via email for comment on Monday.

Bed Bath & Beyond said in a statement that it had been able to secure about $240 million in financing to continue operating while it proceeds with the bankruptcy process and seeks buyers for some or all of its assets.

According to the Associated Press, citing court filings, the company employs 14,000 staff members—down significantly from the 32,000 workers it had last February—whose jobs are now at risk.