The iconic home goods retail chain Bed Bath & Beyond, which went bankrupt in April and quickly liquidated, is back. In its new form, the business will operate as an online-only shop under its new owner, internet retailer Overstock.

Shoppers will recognize the blue and white palette of its website, the selection of discount offers and the sprawling range of goods from serving ware to a wooden porch sign that reads “Welcome.” The new online store looks a lot like the old one, which should reassure its dedicated shoppers. But considering Bed Bath & Beyond’s long, drawn out demise, that may not be such a good thing.

Overstock, which paid $21.5 million for Bed Bath & Beyond’s intellectual property in June, insists that this time around things will be different for the business. Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Johnson told me last week that Overstock’s lean e-commerce business model and Bed Bath & Beyond’s brand recognition “is a match made in retail heaven.”

Overstock will apply its “asset light” strategy, with suppliers shipping goods directly to consumers but using Bed Bath & Beyond’s site and name. Generally known for selling discount home furnishings, Overstock has added more than 600,000 products since June. It’s also restocking well-known national brands such as All-Clad Cookware and OXO, using social media influencers to reach shoppers, and concentrating promotions around specific sales events rather than ongoing discounts. So, it’s not the same exact business as it was just a few months ago.

Overstock isn’t the first to resurrect a once beloved brand, but it faces some unique challenges with Bed Bath & Beyond.

There was a time when Bed Bath & Beyond was the one-stop-shop for back-to-college items or first-time parents pulling together a baby registry. But it failed to change with the times. Not only was it slow to adapt to e-commerce, it struggled with keeping goods in stock and its ubiquitous blue coupons offering 20% off trained shoppers to only make purchases when they had a coupon.

And unlike Toys R’ Us, another bankrupt retailer that has been given a second lease on life, Bed Bath & Beyond probably doesn’t have enough “nostalgia value” to rouse excitement about its return. When Toys R’ Us closed in 2018, loyal shoppers took to social media to express their sadness and share personal stories of being a kid and running the toy aisles.

Bed Bath & Beyond’s relaunch also comes at a challenging time for the industry. Early on in the pandemic, consumers stuck at home and flush with stimulus checks had little else to do but spend lavishly, helping to send shares of Overstock to a record high of $122 in August 2020. Since then, spending on home furnishings — Overstock’s specialty — has declined as consumers burn through stimulus savings and spend more on travel. When they do spend in this area, shoppers appear to be splurging on luxury kitchen appliances that is not generally in Overstock’s inventory or turning to affordable retailers such as Walmart or Amazon for basic home goods.

All that leaves a mid-price retailer such as Overstock in a bit of a bind, especially with home sales declining and people having less need to buy a mid-priced starter couch or coffee table for their new house. And it’s not like online shoppers don’t know how to compare prices. Why buy a generic decorative pillow at Bed Bath & Beyond for $45 when the same one is $29 on Amazon?

It’s hard not to conclude that Overstock is on the defensive as it rebrands under the Bed Bath & Beyond name. Overstock reported last month that its active customers fell 29% in June from a year earlier. It’s 4.6 million customers are a fifth of Wayfair’s 21.8 million. Revenue declined 20% and it posted a net loss of $73 million.

Despite a run of declining operating income, Overstock continues to drive promotions that further shrink the average value of orders. Already its Bed Bath & Beyond relaunch strategy is shaping up to be quite pricey. It’s rolling out “aggressive couponing and promotions” to bring customers back, which will temporarily shrink margins, Johnson said on an earnings call in July.

Working in Overstock’s favor is its strong balance sheet. The company has $343 million in net cash that could help what is likely to be a turbulent next chapter. But relaunching under Bed Bath & Beyond will require an approach other than driving down prices with discounts, which is a strategy that contributed to Bed Bath & Beyond’s downfall in the first place.

Leticia Miranda is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering consumer goods and the retail industry.

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