Bed Bath & Beyond cuts 7% of corporate staff, including COO

(Reuters) - Furnishing retailer Bed Bath & Beyond Inc <BBBY.O> said on Tuesday its chief operating officer was departing as part of its move to cut 7% of corporate staff, following a review of office costs.

The company also decided to eliminate the COO position, which was held by Eugene Castagna. The layoffs include vice presidents, directors and managers at its headquarters in Union, New Jersey, and at other select locations, the company said.

The job cuts follow long-time Chief Executive Officer Steven Temares' departure in May, following pressure from activist investors, who cited the retailer's inability to grow sales and margins.

The company said the workforce reduction is expected to generate net savings of $18.9 million for the rest of fiscal 2019, but will lead to a restructuring charge of about $12 million related to severence and other costs.

Shares of the company were down nearly 1% at $9.27 in mid-day trading.

(Reporting by Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)