Yet another discount store could be headed for disaster as it begins to close locations.
Tough Year For Discount Retail Stores
Let’s first look back at the first half of 2024 and the growing issues among discount retail stores.
Family Dollar, which is owned by Dollar Tree, announced plans to close nearly 1,000 stores throughout 2024. Many of those closings have happened or are in the process of happening at this time.
As Dollar Tree was shuttering Family Dollar locations, the company acquired yet another discount brand. The 99 Cents Only chain had around 170 stores before it ended up under the Dollar Tree umbrella.
The acquisition didn’t exactly mean the company was in the clear. Dollar Tree announced in June that it was reviewing “strategic alternatives” for the Family Dollar brand including possibly putting it up for sale.
While the latest discount chain to fall on hard times isn’t part of Dollar Tree family, it could be headed toward a similar fate as some of its brands.
Big Lots Closing Locations
You can add Big Lots to the list of discount retail stores with plans to close locations in 2024. The chain is more centered around being a home goods retailer compared to its primary discount competition.
A report from Yahoo Finance cited “elevated inflation” as the main driver behind Big Lots locations being shutdown.
“This is resulting in big losses for the company and substantial doubt,” the report states.
Coming into 2024, Big Lots had nearly 1,400 stores spread across 48 states. The Ohio-based company says it is “dedicated to friendly service, trustworthy value, and affordable solutions in every season and category – furniture, food decor, and more.”
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Big Lots as a company started in 1967 as a closeout store catering to those on a tight budget.
While store closings may be on the table, Big Lots also has a few other plans to help stave off downward sales trends. Seth Marks, who serves as the chain’s “vice president of extreme value sourcing,” recently told Axios the chain will add more “extreme bargains” as it hopes to woo customers who are feeling economic “uncertainty.”
