Big Lots

[storewanderer]

Big Lots is closing a number of stores in my area (southern California.) I don't know if there's an article or list anywhere, but there are "store closing signs" posted on at least four stores in my immediate area (San Gabriel Valley.)

I think Big Lots has about 10% of its stores in CA likely leftovers from MacFrugal/Pic N Save.

Are the stores you see closing former M/P stores or are they stores Big Lots later opened?

To be fair I have found the stores Big Lots opened on their own, are quite a bit nicer than the M/P Stores.

I was recently in a Big Lots in Placerville, CA which the company remodeled. It looked pretty good (given my expectations when entering Big Lots are very low, like, underground low), but not very busy. I do find it odd consumables/food were in the back of the store.

I see the Big Lots in San Francisco closed back in August. I am a little surprised there was a Big Lots there in the first place.

[Super S]

Big Lots seems to be shifting away from the closeout model they used to operate on. The deals in the stores are not as good as they were in the past.

The store experience varies widely from one location to the next. In any given market with multiple locations, you will find thoroughly remodeled locations where they even do things such as install drop ceilings and new flooring in old supermarkets, and others where you will find minimally remodeled, aging buildings. This variation also results in different layouts from one location to the next. Some which are better stocked than others.

What I find interesting is how some stores have dedicated staff and registers in the furniture department while others do not.

[storewanderer]

The dedicated staff for furniture is a corporate initiative of Big Lots that they are very proud of. They want to have 2 dedicated staff in the furniture department during "department hours" in the stores. That is like 10-7 or something. In the store I was in last week, even when the checkout line up front had 6 customers waiting and 1 cashier, and when an item from another customer had no tag and the cashier had to deal with the problem himself, the furniture area had 2 employees just standing around doing nothing. The entire hour or so I was in the joke of a store these employees just stood there doing nothing. The store is a huge mess, pallets all over the back wall, sloppy price labeling, no price labeling in some cases, out of stocks everywhere, but the furniture employees are reportedly prohibited from leaving the furniture unless they are going on break or doing a carry out.

If furniture is such a great category for Big Lots, maybe they need to exit all other lines of business and just turn into a furniture store. Because their other categories are terrible. I have considered Big Lots for a couple of furniture purchases, needed some kitchen chairs one time, needed a mattress and/or box frame another time, but each time I tried them I passed due to either lack of immediate product availability or lack of what I was looking for.

[Romr123]

Was noticing on a recent stop at a (small, old) Big Lots that they are doing a weird hybrid of price ticketing and UPC usage, together with ink obliteration of some price tickets (probably taking price increases). This store used to be better than it is now with checking and marking down near expiration dates.

There are still some bargains to be had (some specialty organic cereals are $2.50/box; their "everything bagel" seasoning at $1.29 is the cheapest around (Aldi/Trader Joes is 1.99).

I walk out empty handed about one in every 3 visits, spend about $5 but don't feel it was a wasted trip about 1 in 3, and buy $15-$20 about the 3rd visit.

[BillyGr]

Was noticing on a recent stop at a (small, old) Big Lots that they are doing a weird hybrid of price ticketing and UPC usage, together with ink obliteration of some price tickets (probably taking price increases). This store used to be better than it is now with checking and marking down near expiration dates.

There are still some bargains to be had (some specialty organic cereals are $2.50/box; their "everything bagel" seasoning at $1.29 is the cheapest around (Aldi/Trader Joes is 1.99).

I walk out empty handed about one in every 3 visits, spend about $5 but don't feel it was a wasted trip about 1 in 3, and buy $15-$20 about the 3rd visit.

That does seem to be happening more lately, which is kind of difficult when the prices are not even shown on the shelf.

Particularly since they often have coupons for $x off $y, and it is difficult to be sure you get to $y but not too much above that without knowing exact prices of the individual items (and even some that are shelf tagged ring up differently at times).

[dcpeachy]

Albuquerque just had two of its four stores close suddenly. The signs were removed from the buildings and the streets while the closing sales were happening. One of the stores had just been remodeled to the new prototype (with the bright wall graphics about becoming a "Bigionaire" by shopping at Big Lots). Both stores said that it was due to being burglarized too many times. The store closing signs just said "Clearance Event."

Both of the closed stores were Pic-N-Save when I moved to Albuquerque over 20 years ago, but might have been MacFrugal's at some point. One was in a former Walmart, and shared space with Dollar Tree and a closed Fallas Paredes, in a center with a closed Albertsons/Raley's/John Brooks grocery that is now Auto Zone. The other is in a strip mall that was once a Piggly Wiggly according to Groceteria.

That leaves Albuquerque with just two Big Lots stores (along with one in neighboring Rio Rancho). One is a freestanding building that was a relocation from a KMart Food. The other is a brand-new store that replaced Stein Mart, and serves somewhat as a relocation of a store that was located in the same part of the city, but had closed a while back.

[mbz321]

Big Lots seems to be shifting away from the closeout model they used to operate on. The deals in the stores are not as good as they were in the past.

This isn't very new...I'd say for the last 10 years, Big Lots has been like this, making it feel more like a big 'Family Dollar' with furniture thrown in. A lot of closeout chains seem to be moving to that model. Even places like Ollie's and Ocean State Job Lot seem to have very little closeout/buyout merchandise (although Ollie's is still a bit better)...just products that are cheap for the sake of being cheap. (Ollie's is always featuring a closeout on 'Magnavox' air conditioners or space heater or some other crap that aren't sold anywhere else to begin with).

[storewanderer]

I went into the poor Big Lots today (the one I had the lousy price scan issue with was the better location in the area) and this store, it looks like it is about to close. Shelves are less than 50% stocked in grocery; about 25% stocked in drug/beauty/pet/laundry/cleaning supplies/hardware. There was little unstocked freight (can see into the backroom). The Christmas area was very well stocked.

Received my purchase in a shopping bag that proclaimed "I (big red heart) Big Lots." This chain- the marketing- and the reality of what is going on in the stores- is a huge disconnect. Also the customers in front of me did about 4 transactions and after the first one, did not use a Rewards Card for any of them saying it didn't matter. The cashier was unhappy because they are tracking percentage of Rewards Card use and disciplining cashiers for low usage.

[Romr123]

they are definitely a store I don't trust my info with...they have been doing a 5% off promo on my Chase credit card

[BillyGr]

Big Lots seems to be shifting away from the closeout model they used to operate on. The deals in the stores are not as good as they were in the past.

This isn't very new...I'd say for the last 10 years, Big Lots has been like this, making it feel more like a big 'Family Dollar' with furniture thrown in. A lot of closeout chains seem to be moving to that model. Even places like Ollie's and Ocean State Job Lot seem to have very little closeout/buyout merchandise (although Ollie's is still a bit better)... just products that are cheap for the sake of being cheap. (Ollie's is always featuring a closeout on 'Magnavox' air conditioners or space heater or some other crap that aren't sold anywhere else to begin with).

Likely that, as more of these chains have opened over the years and as each has grown with more stores, there simply isn't enough actual "close out" stuff to stock them all. Particularly if they try to get items with enough quantity to have them in all the stores they have.

In some categories, there may also still be a residual of the issues since 2020 with low supplies and temporary shutdowns that resulted in most, if not all, of items getting sold via regular stores and thus not being "left over" for these places.

I would say Ocean State still gets quite a few things, as you do find items that are around once and then disappear, plus many of the items that get featured for those 3-day sales tend to fit the category (often being items that have shorter dates for usage).