The end is here for Bed Bath & Beyond and buybuy Baby with all remaining stores in their final days of liquidation and discounts up to 90%, Axios' Kelly Tyko writes.

• Why it matters: With the entire company liquidating in bankruptcy, it’s one of the three largest going-out-of-business sales in the last 15 years, rivaled by the 2018 fall of Toys R Us and the 2008 demise of Circuit City.

State of play: Sunday, July 30, is the "last day" that stores will be open to the public, the company confirmed to Axios.

What’s next: The Bed Bath name will live on — not in physical stores, but online. Overstock.com announced it would rebrand under the name after winning the IP in a bankruptcy auction.

• GlobalData managing director Neil Saunders called the move a "big bet" that could help Overstock drive more traffic and trade in the online space.
• “Bed Bath & Beyond is a much more powerful, much better-known brand than Overstock and, despite recent problems, it retains a lot of customer goodwill,” he wrote Thursday in a note.

Meanwhile, stores could reopen under the buybuy Baby name down the line after New Jersey-based Dream on Me Industries, which bought the company's IP for $15.5 million, won a bid to buy 11 of 20 store leases.

The bottom line: If you plan to shop the closing sales, brace for disappointment — there won't be much left in stores — and remember all sales are final.

• And no, you can't use a coupon or gift card, which are now long expired.

There's nothing for McDonald's to grimace about this quarter.

Driving the news: The fast-food chain delivered a 10.3% U.S. same-restaurant sales increase in Q2, compared with a year earlier, Nathan writes.

The intrigue: "Well, if I'm being honest, the theme was Grimace," McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski admitted on an earnings call.

• The return of the long-retired character in the form of the Grimace Birthday Meal was good for sales, but also for social media buzz, generating more than 3 billion views on TikTok.

Zoom in: It's been "one of our most socially engaging campaigns of all time," global CFO Ian Borden said.

💭 Nathan's thought bubble: In uncertain times, nostalgia sells.

🍺 Bud Light brewer Anheuser-Busch is cutting about 350 corporate workers. (Axios)

⚙️ Gears are slowly turning again in the long-dormant M&A market. (Axios Pro: Retail Deals)

Traveling from the U.S. to Europe will require applying for permission in advance — and an accompanying fee — beginning in 2024, Nathan writes.

What's happening: The EU is imposing the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS), requiring travelers who don't need a visa for entry — which includes Americans — to file an application in advance to get in.

Details: ETIAS applicants must provide their name, birthdate, nationality, address, parents' first names, email, phone number, travel document details, level of education, job, travel destination and criminal convictions.

• The EU says applicants should receive a decision within four days.
• Yes, but: Make that as much as two weeks if you're prompted for additional documentation or "up to 30 days if you are invited to an interview."
• The application costs €7, or about $8.

State of play: Once approved, you're good for three years "or until the travel document you used in your application expires" — likely your passport — "whichever comes first."

Emily in Paris, meet Polly Pocket.

What's happening: Lily Collins, the star of the Netflix comedy-drama "Emily in Paris," will be the title character in an upcoming film featuring Mattel's Polly Pocket toy, Variety reports.

The big picture: With "Barbie" turning into a smash hit, it's all systems go for Mattel's strategy of turning its toys into cinematic events, Nathan writes.

• Lena Dunham, the creator, writer and star of HBO's "Girls," is set to direct and write the Polly Pocket film.

In case you didn't have one: Polly Pocket was a lineup of mini dolls and accessories popularized in the 1990s.

"The things we were all freaked out about earlier this year all went away."