World Market (store)

World Market, formerly Cost Plus World Market, is an American chain of specialty/import retail stores, selling home furniture, decor, curtains, rugs, gifts, apparel, coffee, wine, craft beer, and international food products. The brand's original name came from the initial concept, since abandoned, of selling items for "cost plus 10%". It moved its headquarters to Alameda, California in 2016.[2] The company was owned by Bed Bath & Beyond from 2012 to 2021.

"Cost Plus" redirects here. For other uses, see Cost plus (disambiguation).
World Market, Inc.
World Market
TypePrivate
IndustryRetail, online shopping
Founded1958 (1958)
Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco, California, U.S.
Founder
  • William Amthor
  • Lincoln Bartlett
HeadquartersAlameda, California, U.S.
Number of locations
258 (2020)
Area served
United States
Key people
Alex Smith, Executive Chairman
ProductsFurniture and decor, apparel, international foods
RevenueUS$963.83 million (2011)[1]
US$16.5 million (2011)
Number of employees
6,127[1]
ParentBed Bath & Beyond (2012–2021)
Kingswood Capital Management (2021–present)
Websitewww.worldmarket.com
Inside a Cost Plus World Market in Kennesaw, Georgia

History

On 23 October 1958,[3] William Amthor and Lincoln Bartlett[4] opened the first Cost Plus store at 2552 Taylor Street on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, California. This location permanently closed in 2020.[5] Founder William Amthor had been operating a small family-owned furniture store in San Francisco, when he imported a surplus of wicker furniture. Rather than display the wicker pieces in his store, he rented 4,000 square feet (370 m2) of warehouse space in the Fisherman's Wharf area of San Francisco. The imported furniture sold quickly, and Amthor began a new business as an importer. When he opened his first store in 1958, it was devoted exclusively to wicker and rattan that he had imported himself. The store was named Cost Plus after Amthor's strategy of pricing the imported goods at cost, plus ten percent. The stores featured an eclectic mix of imported furniture and home furnishings, displayed in the style of a bazaar.[6]

In 1962, with the help of Tandy Corporation, another Cost Plus-named import chain was founded in Texas, named Cost Plus Imports. These stores would, in 1965, be renamed Pier 1 Imports, and would be sold in 1966.

The success in San Francisco led Amthor to quickly open other stores across the Bay Area and later in other states. There are 258 stores spread across 39 states and Washington, D.C.

In 1987, Bechtel Investments (Fremont Group) completed a leveraged buyout.[7]

In the 1990s, "Cost Plus" shifted the branding of its stores to either Cost Plus World Market or simply World Market in markets new to the brand (generally in the Eastern or Southern regions of the United States). In 1996, Cost Plus World Market went public and began trading on the NASDAQ stock exchange.

In February 2006, Cost Plus reported quarterly earnings of $125 million, with $367 million in revenue for the fourth fiscal quarter of 2006. Annual earnings were $280 million with over $800 million in revenue.

In 2012, Cost Plus was acquired by Bed Bath & Beyond.[8]

In 2014, Cost Plus World Market launched an online crowdsourcing-model marketplace called Craft by World Market.[9] The website posts items for one month at a time, and sells only products that attract enough pre-orders to be worthwhile.[10]

In October 2019, Bed Bath and Beyond announced pending closure of 40 Bed Bath and Beyond stores and 20 World Market or other subsidiaries.[11] The company sold Cost Plus World Market to Kingswood Capital Management in February 2021.[12]

References
  1. "Cost Plus, Inc. Company Profile". Yahoo Finance. Archived from the original on July 26, 2013. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  2. "Cost Plus will move head offices, 400 workers, to Alameda from Oakland". The Mercury News. 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  3. "Cost Plus celebrates 50th anniversary". Chain Store Age. October 6, 2008. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  4. Hirschmann, Niloufer. "The world in a paper bag" (PDF). Kroeber Anthropological Society Papers. University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  5. "Bed Bath & Beyond sells Cost Plus World Market". The North Bay Business Journal. 2021-01-20. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
  6. "History". Cost Plus. n.d. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  7. "Cost Plus, Inc". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  8. Hsu, Tiffany (May 9, 2012). "Bed Bath & Beyond to buy Cost Plus for $495 million". Los Angeles Times.
  9. "Craft by World Market". Cost Plus World Market.
  10. Somerville, Heather (February 20, 2014). "World Market to launch online boutique to sell handmade goods". San Jose Mercury News.
  11. "Bed Bath and Beyond to close stores after holiday season". WAND TV. October 3, 2019.
  12. Rivas, Teresa. "Bed Bath & Beyond Sells Cost Plus World Market, Buys Back More Stock". www.barrons.com. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
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