In a retail world where discount chains often flicker out like cheap candles, Big Lots is staging a gritty comeback. The Ohio-based retailer, teetering on the edge of oblivion after filing for bankruptcy last year, announced it’s throwing open the doors of 132 stores across 14 states this May. It’s a bold move, fueled by new ownership and a leaner, meaner approach to bargain-hunting.
The revival kicks off in two waves: 54 stores will fire up their registers on May 1, with the remaining 78 following suit on May 15. This follows a smaller test run in April, when nine stores in states like Kentucky and North Carolina flipped their signs back to “open” and saw customers swarm in. The company’s new parent, Variety Wholesalers, a North Carolina outfit that snapped up 219 Big Lots locations in January, is betting big on a treasure-hunt vibe. Think less sterile superstore, more rummage-sale energy, with racks stuffed with discounted brand-name clothes, home goods, and pantry staples.
These aren’t your grandma’s Big Lots, though. The revamped stores are ditching perishable foods—no more wilted lettuce or day-old bread—and scaling back on bulky furniture. Instead, they’re doubling down on apparel, from kids’ tees to workwear, and leaning hard into everyday essentials. It’s a pivot aimed at luring back shoppers who love a deal but don’t want to wade through a warehouse of sofas to find it. The stores, spread across the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest, range from small-town outposts to suburban strip malls, each remodeled to feel fresh but familiar.
Variety Wholesalers, led by CEO Lisa Seigies, is framing this as a love letter to value-driven shoppers. The company’s statement on April 29 was blunt: they’re here to deliver “the best bang for your buck” with famous brands at cut-rate prices. It’s a calculated gamble, especially after Big Lots shuttered hundreds of stores in 2024 amid a brutal retail slump. Bankruptcy filings from September 2024 showed the chain drowning in debt, with liabilities topping $1 billion. Yet Variety’s acquisition, finalized in early 2025, gave the brand a lifeline.
The reopening list, released on April 29, reads like a road map of Middle America: 17 stores in Ohio, 14 in Pennsylvania, 12 in North Carolina, and a smattering across states like Indiana, Michigan, and Tennessee. Smaller clusters will pop up in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia. Each location has been scrubbed and restocked, with layouts designed to make bargain-hunting feel like a sport.
This isn’t a full resurrection—Big Lots once operated over 1,400 stores at its peak—but it’s a defiant step back from the brink. The 132 reopenings build on the momentum of April’s soft launch, which proved customers still crave the chain’s mix of chaos and deals. Whether this sparks a broader turnaround depends on foot traffic and sales, but for now, Big Lots is dusting itself off and stepping back into the ring.
The first stores reopen May 1, 2025, with the second wave on May 15, 2025. The 132 locations span 14 states, with the heaviest concentration in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina.