Big Lots Announces Bruce Thorn as Chief Executive Officer

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Aug 28, 2018, 17:00 ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 28, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE: BIG) announced today that Bruce K. Thorn, 51, a well-respected retail industry executive, has been named Chief Executive Officer and President of Big Lots, Inc. Mr. Thorn was most recently the President and Chief Operating Officer of Tailored Brands, Inc., a leading specialty retailer of men's tailored clothing and men's formalwear. Tailored Brands announced Mr. Thorn's resignation today. Following a transition period with Tailored Brands, Mr. Thorn is expected to be formally appointed as the CEO and President of Big Lots at the end of September, at which time Mr. Thorn will also be appointed as a director to fill the vacancy created at the time of David Campisi's retirement in April 2018.

Mr. Thorn joined Tailored Brands in 2015 as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In March 2017, he was named President and Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining Tailored Brands, Mr. Thorn held various enterprise level roles with PetSmart, Inc. since 2007, most recently as Executive Vice President, Store Operations, Services and Supply Chain. Mr. Thorn's other experiences include leadership positions with Gap, Inc., Cintas Corp, LESCO, Inc. and The United States Army. Mr. Thorn earned a B.S. from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and an M.B.A. from the University of Cincinnati.

"Bruce Thorn is a strong strategic thinker in addition to being an accomplished retail executive and operator," said Cynthia T. Jamison, Chair of the Nominating / Corporate Governance Committee and of the Board's search committee. "We were fortunate to be able to consider a couple of very capable internal candidates in addition to a broad range of external candidates. Bruce's combination of strategic vision, leadership skills and history of operational success impressed all of us and the search firm that we used in the process. We believe that he will be able to build on the Company's transformation into a community retailer while also nimbly navigating the rapidly changing and disrupted retail environment."

James R. Chambers, the Company's non-executive Chair, added: "The entire Board looks forward to welcoming Bruce to Big Lots and to his leadership. We also want to express our gratitude to Lisa Bachmann, Executive Vice President, Chief Merchandising and Operating Officer, and Tim Johnson, Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as well as the other members of the Company's Executive Leadership Team (ELT), for their leadership and stewardship of the Company during the search period of the past several months. We are confident that Bruce's addition will make an already strong and well-established management team even better."

About Big Lots, Inc.
Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE: BIG) is a community retailer operating 1,416 BIG LOTS stores in 47 states, dedicated to friendly service, trustworthy value, and affordable solutions in every season and category – furniture, food, décor, and more. We exist to serve everyone like family, providing a better shopping experience for our customers, valuing and developing our associates, and creating growth for our shareholders. Big Lots supports the communities it serves through the Big Lots Foundation, a charitable organization focused on four areas of need: hunger, housing, healthcare, and education. For more information about the Company, visit www.biglots.com.

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Forward-looking statements that we make herein and in other reports and releases are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those discussed in such forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, current economic and credit conditions, the cost of goods, our inability to successfully execute strategic initiatives, competitive pressures, economic pressures on our customers and us, the availability of brand name closeout merchandise, trade restrictions, freight costs, the risks discussed in the Risk Factors section of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, and other factors discussed from time to time in our other filings with the SEC, including Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. This release should be read in conjunction with such filings, and you should consider all of these risks, uncertainties and other factors carefully in evaluating forward-looking statements.

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SOURCE Big Lots, Inc.