Bath & Body Works is making some big moves as it looks to attract shoppers this holiday season.
Earlier this week, I covered the fragrance retailer’s expanded partnership with Ulta Beauty. From now through Dec. 26, shoppers can find a selection of the brand’s most popular products (and an exclusive scent!) at all Ulta locations.
But the company isn’t stopping there.
Today, Bath & Body Works announced another way it plans to make your seasonal shopping easier — an all-new store format designed to make discovery simpler than ever.
Bath & Body Works debuts new store format
On Oct. 23, Bath & Body Works debuted its new store format in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The Feel Good concept store has a simplified floor plan, focused product displays, dedicated testing spaces, and a more curated selection of the retailer’s extensive fragrance and product range.
The stores were designed in response to feedback from customers that Bath & Body Works’ traditional locations can feel overwhelming and complex to navigate.
“Our Consumer First Formula starts with listening to consumers and understanding what they want from Bath & Body Works,” Chief Commercial Officer Maly Bernstein said in a statement.
“The Feel Good concept brings those insights to life in new and innovative ways, while giving us an opportunity to test, learn and gather real-time feedback on fragrance discovery, trial and connection in our stores,” he continued.
The new format may be simplified and streamlined compared to most existing locations, but that doesn’t mean it has lost that familiar Bath & Body Works feel, replete with warm wood fixtures and natural stone sinks.
“The intent behind our Feel Good concept stores was to create an environment that feels warm, authentic and beautiful while making it easier and more enjoyable for consumers to shop,” said Associate Vice President of store design Samantha Day.
The first Feel Good location can be found at Charlotte’s SouthPark Mall, with additional concept stores set to open in Columbus, Ohio, and Miami, Florida, in October and November.
Bath & Body Works debuted a new store format on Oct. 23, designed to simplify its “overwhelming” shopping experience.
Bath & Body Works
Bath & Body Works is rethinking the in-store experience
The concept stores are part of Bath & Body Works’ larger turnaround efforts.
In late 2025, after several disappointing quarters, the company launched its Consumer First Formula, a strategic plan to return to growth.
“We are undertaking a comprehensive, end-to-end evolution of our business — building a Bath & Body Works that is more innovative, more relevant, and easier to shop,” CEO Daniel Heaf said in a statement at the time. “This work lays the foundation for sustained, long-term growth as we reposition the company from a specialty retailer to a premier global brand.”
Among other things, the retailer has been focusing on the physical shopping experience.
Heaf has said that the stores “aren’t as easy to shop as they should be” and that customers have often complained that they’re “overwhelming.”
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In response, the company conducted a complete merchandising reset across its full fleet of stores in the second quarter of 2026.
“Clearer signage and more intuitive layouts organized by fragrance, form, and franchise are designed to make our assortment easier to understand and products easier to discover,” Heaf told investors during an earnings call.
He added that “initial feedback from consumers and associates has been positive, and we will continue to evolve the store experience to improve new consumer acquisition, conversion, and store productivity.”
The Feel Good concept stores build on those efforts, giving Bath & Body Works another way to test how changes to its physical shopping experience could help attract new customers and drive sales.
Bath & Body Works balances partnerships with store investments
The new store format also comes as Bath & Body Works looks for additional ways to reach consumers beyond its traditional retail footprint.
Within the last year, Bath & Body Works has launched partnerships with both Amazon and Ulta Beauty and seen enormous growth within those channels.
That expansion makes it even more crucial for the company to get the in-store experience right.
While third-party partnerships can help introduce the brand to more consumers, the company still needs to give shoppers a reason to visit its own locations.
By simplifying its store layouts and making fragrance discovery easier, Bath & Body Works is betting that its physical locations can continue to offer an experience that keeps shoppers coming back and allow it to remain the mall staple we know it to be.
Related: Bath & Body Works makes a big move for the holidays
