219 Big Lots stores have reopened in 2025: Is your store on the list?
219 Big Lots stores have reopened in 2025: Is your store on the list?
Show Caption
Hide Caption
Big Lots stores set to reopen in six states
A number of Big Lots stores are set to reopen on April 10 despite the company filing for bankruptcy and closing multiple locations last year.
unbranded - Newsworthy
Big Lots' comeback is continuing.
After four rounds of store reopenings that stared in April, Big Lots has reopened more than 200 locations across the United States. A total of 219 stores have reopened, the same number of stores that were bought by Variety Wholesalers in December 2024, who also acquired two distribution centers.
"We're thrilled to bring the Big Lots! brand back to life by offering more deals than ever, lots of famous brands, and a new apparel department for the entire family," Variety Wholesalers CEO Lisa Seigies said in an April news release.
Big Lots did not immediately answer USA TODAY's questions regarding any future store reopenings.
Here's what to know about Big Lots store reopenings so far this year.
Where have Big Lots stores reopened?
Big Lots has reopened stores in four different waves, including the one on Thursday, June 4. The first round saw nine stores reopen across six states in April. Two further rounds in May saw 132 stores reopen across the U.S.
And on Thursday, 78 stores across nine states reopened. Here's where:
Other retailers taking over Big Lots locations
Other retailers besides Variety Wholesalers have announced the purchase of Big Lots locations. Rhode Island-based Ocean State Job Lot announced in March that it would be buying 15 Big Lots locations in New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont.
In February, Ollie's Bargain Outlet said it would be buying 40 former Big Lots store locations.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNBC
14 minutes ago
- CNBC
Russia's ruble rockets: The curious case of the world's best-performing currency this year
In the midst of a long-drawn war, declining oil prices, stiff sanctions, and an economy that's on the downhill, Russia's ruble has been rising. In fact, it is the world's best-performing currency so far this year, according to Bank of America, with gains of over 40%. The ruble's stunning rally in 2025 marks a sharp reversal from the past two years when the currency had depreciated dramatically. What's powering the Russian currency? The strength in the ruble has less to do with a sudden jump in foreign investors' confidence than with capital controls and policy tightening, market watchers told CNBC. The weakness in the dollar comes as an added bonus. Brendan McKenna, international economist and foreign exchange strategist at Wells Fargo, lists three reasons for the ruble's rally. "The central bank has opted to keep rates relatively elevated, capital controls and other FX restrictions have tightened a bit, and [there's been] some progress or attempt at progress in finding a peace between Russia and Ukraine." Russia's central bank has maintained a restrictive stance to curtail high inflation, keeping domestic interest rates high at 21% and tightening credit. The steep borrowing costs are deterring local businesses from importing goods, in turn reducing demand for foreign currency among Russian businesses and consumers, said industry watchers. There's been a decline in foreign currency demand from local importers, given weak consumption and the adequate supply of ruble, said Andrei Melaschenko, an economist at Renaissance Capital. That decline has given the ruble a boost as banks don't need to sell rubles to buy the dollar or yuan. Russian exporters need to be paid in rubles, or at least convert dollar payment into rubles, thereby increasing demand. Importers, on the other hand, have stopped purchasing foreign goods, and so do not need to sell rubles to pay in dollars. In the first quarter of 2025, there was an "overstocking" in consumer electronics, cars and trucks which were actively imported in the second half of last year in anticipation of the increase in import duties, said the Moscow-based economist. The consumer activity cooldown was primarily in the durable goods sector, which made up a sizable portion of Russia's imports, Melaschenko said. Another key reason the Russian ruble has strengthened this year is that Russian exporters, in particular the oil industry, have been converting foreign earnings back into rubles, analysts said. The Russian government requires large exporters to bring a portion of their foreign earnings back into the country and exchange them for rubles on the local market, according to the government. Between January and April, the sales of foreign currencies by the largest exporters in Russia totaled $42.5 billion, data from CBR showed. This is almost a 6% jump compared to the four months before January. CBR shrinking money supply is also supporting ruble, said Steve Hanke, professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University. In August 2023, the rate of growth in the money created by the CBR was soaring at 23.9% per year, he said. This figure has turned negative since January — currently contracting at a rate of -1.19% per year, said Hanke. Further, hopes for a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia following the election of U.S. President Donald Trump had also sparked some optimism, said Wells Fargo's McKenna. Expectations of Russia's reintegration into the economy had prompted some capital flows back into ruble-denominated assets, in spite of the capital controls, which have supported the currency's strength to some extent. Despite the ruble's current strength, analysts caution that it may not be sustainable. Oil prices—a major pillar of Russia's export economy — have fallen significantly this year, which could weigh on FX inflows. "We believe that the ruble is close to its maximum and may begin to weaken in the near future," Melaschenko said. "Oil prices have fallen significantly, which should be reflected in a decrease in export revenue and the sale of its foreign currency component," he added. While peace talks between Russia and Ukraine recently have not wielded any concrete developments, McKenna also noted that a concrete peace deal could erode ruble's strength as the controls such as the FX restrictions that have supported the currency might be lifted. "Ruble can selloff pretty rapidly going forward, especially if a peace or ceasefire is reached," he said. "In that scenario, capital controls probably get fully lifted and the central bank might cut rates rather quickly," he added. Exporters are also seeing slimmer margins, industry analysts noted, in particular the country's oil sector against the backdrop of declining global oil prices. The government, too, is feeling the squeeze — lower oil prices combined with a stronger ruble are eroding oil and gas revenues. The government's finances are highly sensitive to fluctuations in crude prices, with oil and gas earnings making up around 30% of federal revenues in 2024, according Heli Simola, senior economist at the Bank of Finland. "The Ministry of Finance has been forced to lean more heavily on the National Welfare Fund to cover spending," Melaschenko said. "And there may be further cuts to non-priority expenditures if this trend continues." That said, aside from the oil trade, Russia has been mostly isolated from the global marketplace. "Meaning, a weaker RUB does not add much to Russia's trade competitiveness," said McKenna.
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Loblaw pulls Folgers coffee from shelves over 'unjustified' cost increases
Shoppers at Loblaw Cos. Ltd.'s stores will soon no longer be able to get a coffee fix by purchasing Folgers-brand products after a pricing dispute prompted the grocer to pull them from its shelves. In an email sent to retailers on Wednesday, Loblaw said it decided to delist all Folgers products after talks with the coffee maker's manufacturer couldn't solve the impasse. "After several weeks of negotiations, we were unable to reach an agreement with the manufacturers of Folgers coffee regarding their significant and unjustified proposed price increases," said the email signed by Loblaw category director Suren Theivakadacham and obtained by The Canadian Press. "We are doing this because we are on the side of customers, and doing what we can to keep prices low ... This decision to delist Folgers coffee reflects our commitment to providing value for customers by not accepting unreasonable cost increases that would hurt Canadians." The email contained an attached list of alternative coffee products the grocer offers as stores prepare to update their shelves. The move comes as coffee prices continue to rise in Canada. Last month, Statistics Canada reported the price of coffee and tea was up 13.4 per cent in April on a year-over-year basis — outpacing both the 3.8 per cent increase in the cost of groceries that month, as well as Canada's overall inflation rate of 1.7 per cent. Experts say higher coffee prices are in part due to recent extreme weather and changes in temperature, which have caused some producers to experience lower yields. Other pressures include a weak Canadian dollar, making it more expensive to import coffee to Canada from other countries, along with the fact coffee is one of the products still subject to Canada's retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. While the U.S. isn't a major producer of coffee, Canadian distributors often purchase it from American brokers. Folgers products are made by the Orrville, Ohio-based J.M. Smucker Co., which raised prices of its coffee offerings both last June and October in response to higher costs it is facing. President and CEO Mark Smucker told analysts on the company's quarterly earnings call in February that more coffee price increases were likely on the way. He said pricing decisions are dictated by costs it faces. "Although we haven't laid out when other pricing is going to happen, we do expect it's going to happen in the next fiscal year, probably in the first half," Smucker said at the time. In a statement, the company said it has been experiencing "record high and sustained" prices of unroasted coffee beans. "Our pricing actions have been managed prudently and responsibly and have only been taken when justified by costs," said Smucker's spokesman Frank Cirillo in an email on Thursday. "We remain dedicated to working with all our retail partners to manage increased input costs while delivering value to our shared consumers." But Loblaw spokeswoman Catherine Thomas said Folgers' proposed cost increases were "unreasonable and unjustified based on underlying costs" and that the grocer felt it was important to push back as many Canadians continue to struggle with unaffordability. "Despite several attempts to address this with the manufacturer, we were not successful," Thomas said in a statement. "We will not accept or pass unjustified cost increases on to customers and therefore we have removed Folgers from our shelves ... We recognize this may create some inconvenience for customers and for that we apologize but again, we will do what is right to help address price increases." Thomas added Loblaw expects most of its stores to be out of stock of Folgers products over the next week or two. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2025. Companies in this story: (TSX:L) Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
US stock futures mixed ahead of May jobs report
U.S. stock futures are mixed ahead of the key monthly jobs report. The May jobs report is due before the bell. Economists, on average, expect 130,000 new jobs created and a 4.2% unemployment rate. At 6 a.m. ET, futures linked to the blue-chip Dow added 0.07%, while broad S&P 500 futures fell -0.11% and tech-heavy Nasdaq futures rose 0.14%. Docusign said billings growth was slower than expected in the first quarter, according to FactSet. Lululemon's cut its full-year earnings guidance, citing a 'dynamic macroenvironment.' Broadcom's quarterly results just beat forecasts. Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@ and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US stock futures mixed ahead of May jobs report Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
