Which Big Lots stores are staying open? List of leases shows 200 locations designated for new owner

The discount retailer that plans to take over and operate hundreds of Big Lots stores is closer to deciding which locations it will save.

Some 200 Big Lots leases have been designated to be transferred to Variety Wholesalers, the North Carolina-based owner of Roses and other discount chains, new court documents show.

In a bankruptcy filing dated Monday, Big Lots said it will transfer the locations as part of its agreement with Gordon Brothers, the restructuring and investment firm that took control of the embattled retailer earlier this month.

The list includes Big Lots locations across at least a dozen states, mostly in the South and Midwest regions. It’s unclear what Variety’s plans for the locations fully entail or if the stores will remain open continuously throughout the process. Concerned parties have until February 18 to object to the transfer of the leases.

A spokesperson for Gordon Brothers confirmed with Fast Company that Variety intends to operate the leases as Big Lots stores, but said the list was not final and new locations could be added. Fast Company has also reached out to Variety Wholesalers.

Variety had originally said it would take over between 200 to 400 Big Lots stores in an 11th-hour deal announced late last year that purportedly rescued the bankrupt brand from complete oblivion.

Although Big Lots said the plan would potentially save thousands of jobs, workers have mostly been in the dark about which of the retailer’s more than 800 locations would be closing for good. The new list is likely to provide a modicum of closure for some employees who have been working under a lot of uncertainty for many weeks.

The parties have asked a court to give them until April 7 to make the final determination. Gordon Brothers has since listed hundreds of Big Lots leases for sale to retailers that want to take over the spaces.

This story is developing…

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