COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — More than a dozen Big Lots stores are reopening Thursday across Ohio.
The openings mark the fourth and final wave of stores relaunching this year by Variety Wholesalers, the North Carolina company that acquired 220 Big Lots shops when the chain underwent new ownership in January. Variety’s first round reopened nine stores in early April, followed by nearly 60 storefronts in the second wave in May, including seven in Ohio. A third round included eight Ohio locations.
The final wave is relaunching nearly 80 storefronts across nine states on Thursday, including the following 13 Ohio locations:
- 1890 W. Market St. in Akron
- 426 E. Waterloo Road in Akron
- 241 W. Wooster Rd. in Barberton
- 1336 Whipple Avenue NW in Canton
- 3640 Werk Road in Cincinnati
- 405 Howe Ave. in Cuyahoga Falls
- 400 Silver Bridge Plaza in Gallipolis
- 12588 Rockside Road in Garfield Heights
- 10560 Harrison Ave. in Harrison
- 110 South 7th St. in Marietta
- 8489 Market St. in Mentor
- 367 County Road 406 in South Point
- 9025 Ohio River Road in Wheelersburg
The North Carolina company said the reopenings are setting the stage for a grand celebration this fall across all store locations. Details of the event will be announced in the coming months.
“The connection with the communities we serve, and the positive customer feedback has been more than we could have imagined,” Variety CEO Lisa Seigies said. “This enthusiastic response reinforces our belief that taking Big Lots back to the roots of what made it a huge success resonates with our customers. Providing great value will always be our core mission.”
While Variety is continuing to operate these locations as Big Lots stores, several other companies have bought shuttered shops from Gordon Brothers, the brand’s new owner, that will become part of their chains. HomeBuys is taking over two former Ohio Big Lots, one of which is in Pickerington at 1171 Hill Road North.
Aldi is purchasing nine locations across eight states, Burlington is adding 12 stores across nine states to their collection of 22 Big Lots shops, and Tractor Supply Co. is picking up 15 stores across 14 states. Ollie’s purchased 40 storefronts that were marked for closure, increasing the chain’s ownership of former Big Lots stores to 63, including four in Ohio.
Big Lots filed for bankruptcy last September and was almost acquired by a top Dollar Shave Club and Toms investor for $765 million before the sale fell through. The chain then secured a last-minute sale in December to Gordon Brothers, who has since been reorganizing Big Lots’ U.S. stores while also sorting out the chain’s Columbus headquarters.
In late January, Big Lots entered into an agreement with OhioHealth to sell the retailer’s 24-acre corporate headquarters in northeast Columbus for $36 million. Big Lots announced in a city notice last year that 555 employees based at the East Dublin Granville Road headquarters will be terminated. The letter said the “mass layoffs” were expected to conclude by April.
