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.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking
Statements
Certain statements in this release are forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, and such statements are intended to qualify for
the protection of the safe harbor provided by the Act. The words
"anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "objective," "goal," "project,"
"intend," "plan," "believe," "will," "should," "may," "target,"
"forecast," "guidance," "outlook" and similar expressions generally
identify forward-looking statements. Similarly, descriptions of our
objectives, strategies, plans, goals or targets are also
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements relate to
the expectations of management as to future occurrences and trends,
including statements expressing optimism or pessimism about future
operating results or events and projected sales, earnings, capital
expenditures and business strategy. Forward-looking statements are
based upon a number of assumptions concerning future conditions
that may ultimately prove to be inaccurate. Forward-looking
statements are and will be based upon management's then-current
views and assumptions regarding future events and operating
performance, and are applicable only as of the dates of such
statements. Although we believe the expectations expressed in
forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions
within the bounds of our knowledge, forward-looking statements, by
their nature, involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, any
one or a combination of which could materially affect our business,
financial condition, results of operations or liquidity.
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.
You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date thereof. We undertake
no obligation to publicly update forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
You are advised, however, to consult any further disclosures we
make on related subjects in our public announcements
and SEC filings.
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SOURCE Big Lots, Inc.