Big Lots plans to close over 50 additional retail locations

Big Lots aims to permanently close the doors of more than 50 stores.

The discount retailer announced its intention to close 56 additional locations by filing Friday with the bankruptcy court overseeing its Chapter 11 proceedings.

The new stores scheduled to close are located in numerous states, including California, Texas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Illinois, Arkansas, Alabama, Connecticut, Virginia, Indiana, Iowa, Colorado , Missouri, Washington, Arizona, Maryland, Kansas, Louisiana, Florida, Oklahoma, Wisconsin and North Carolina.

Discount home goods retailer Big Lots Inc. is preparing to file for bankruptcy as early as Sunday and plans to sell its chain of stores through a court-supervised process, according to people familiar with the plans. (Eric Thayer/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

Affected parties have until Wednesday afternoon to object to the planned closures, according to the statement.

BIG LOTS is filing for bankruptcy and will close some stores due to sale to an investment firm

The locations would be in addition to the numerous branches that the discounter has already closed this year.

Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings early last month to facilitate the sale of “substantially all” of its assets to its “stalking horse bidder” Nexus Capital Management.

Big Lots announced its intention to close 56 additional locations by filing Friday with the bankruptcy court overseeing its Chapter 11 proceedings. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/Getty Images)

In early September, the discount retailer said its board had concluded that “concluding the sales agreement with Nexus and initiating a court-supervised sales process is the best path forward to maximize value and ensure continued operations.” For the transaction to be completed, Nexus must be the winner of a court-supervised auction.

Big Lots also said at the time that the Chapter 11 process would result in additional location closures.

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“While most of our branch locations are profitable, we intend to move forward with a more focused presence to ensure we operate efficiently and are best positioned to serve our customers,” said CEO Bruce Thorn. “To achieve this, we want to use the possibilities of this process to further optimize our branch fleet.”

Before filing for Chapter 11, reports had indicated that Big Lots might file for bankruptcy.

Before filing for Chapter 11, reports had indicated that Big Lots might file for bankruptcy. (Howard Schnapp/Newsday RM via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The discount store is known for selling home goods, furniture, seasonal decor and other products.

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In the second quarter, Big Lots posted net sales of $1.05 billion, a decline of over 8% compared to the same three-month period last year. The quarterly net loss was nearly $238.46 million.

Pilar Arias contributed to this report.