Columbus, Ohio — In an Aug. 2 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Top 50 retailer Big Lots revealed that it has amended its credit agreement and plans to close up to 315 stores.
On July 31, Big Lots and certain of its direct and indirect wholly owned subsidiaries entered into the second amendment (referred to as the ABL Amendment) to its $900 million, five-year asset-based revolving credit facility (referred to as the 2022 Credit Agreement) and Amendment No. 1 (referred to as the Term Loan Amendment) to its $200 million “first-in, last-out” delayed draw term loan facility.
The ABL Amendment amends the 2022 Credit Agreement to, among other things, increase the number of permitted store closings from 150 to 315, reduce the aggregate commitments under the 2022 Credit Agreement from $900 million to $800 million, increase the interest rate applicable to borrowings under the 2022 Credit Agreement by 50 bps and require the company to deliver certain additional reports to the lenders.
The Term Loan Amendment amends the Term Loan Facility to, among other things, increase the number of permitted store closings from 150 to 315, require all additional borrowings under the Term Loan Facility to be made in accordance with the approved budget as defined in the Term Loan Amendment and require the company to deliver certain additional reports to the lenders.
A report from MassLive.com indicates that the Columbus, Ohio-based discounter has already begun closing stores beyond the 142 that HTT sister publication Furniture Today reported in July. It notes that Big Lots currently has 289 stores listed on its website as “Closing This Location.”
In a June filing with the SEC, Big Lots indicated that it expected to close 30 to 40 stores in 2024, and it expressed doubts about its ability to continue as an ongoing concern due to a combination of lagging sales and increasing debt load.