It’s Twinkies time at Big Lots
Back in 1970, my friends and I lived a preteen dream. Summer days were spent lounging on the banks of a slow moving river, lazily tossing our fishing lines into the water, not caring much what we hooked. Some of my fondest memories of those days were the stops we would make on our walk to the river at what my grandmother named "the day-old bread store" but everyone else called the thrift store. There we would buy a big box of cupcakes, fruit pies or other sweet baked treats to tide us over as we angled July and August days away. This trip down memory lane was sparked by the announcement that Big Lots has been named the Official Hostess Thrift Outlet.
Yesterday, along with Hostess, the discounter announced it would begin selling Twinkies, CupCakes, etc. at its stores at up to 40 percent off suggested retail prices. Hostess closed its 600 thrift stores as part of a cost-cutting measure.
"The Thrift Outlets were extremely popular," said Big Lots CEO David Campisi in a statement. "We are thrilled to team up with this iconic brand and give customers a new destination to find outstanding savings on the products they know and love."
"It’s a win-win," Chris Boring, principal of Boulevard Strategies, told The Columbus Dispatch. "I don’t think Hostess was necessarily the most-nimble retailer. They had some class-C locations, whereas Big Lots has some excellent locations. Right there, you’re getting an upgrade. Plus, Big Lots is a professional retailer — that’s what they do."
Big Lots has launched a social media campaign called #thriftisback to promote its effort. Two videos to promote the retailer’s position as the "official Hostess thrift outlet" began running on YouTube yesterday. The company is clearly hoping the videos will go viral to help its new venture take off online and in its stores.
"There is a tremendous hunger for the Hostess brand and for saving money at Big Lots," said Andy Stein, chief customer officer for the chain. "We plan to welcome Twinkies in a big way."
- Big Lots Mostess – Big Lots/YouTube
- Big Lots Twinkies Time – Big Lots/YouTube
- Big Lots Now Official Hostess Thrift Outlet – Big Lots/PRNewswire
- The Thrift is Back – Big Lots
- Big Lots becomes thrift store for Hostess – The Columbus Dispatch (tiered sub.)
Do you expect success from Big Lots’ partnership with Hostess? How important will social media be to the ultimate success or failure of Big Lots as the “official thrift outlet for Hostess?”
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10 Comments on "It’s Twinkies time at Big Lots"
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Big Lots needs to blast the doors off the social scene and get the Millennials totally absorbed on Hostess “high-health” products.
Great move by Hostess and Big Lots. Will add to the nations healthcare costs – but hey – Twinkies are America.
Grabbin’ a Twinkie for breakfast!
Yes. There is a tremendous Hostess/Twinkie following. As noted, Hostess was a marginal retailer at best. This decision should drive traffic to Big Lots, enabling the retailer to sell additional products beyond the beloved Twinkies.
The social media campaign makes sense. It gives Big Lots a more contemporary image as well as extend its appeal to younger consumers.
Should be a win/win for both parties.
Very crafty move by both parties. Other value channel retailers must be scrambling to find similar arrangements. Glad to see the “stale store” going away. Just don’t know why it took so long for someone to figure out that this makes sense.
The thrift store concept should work well with the Big Lot customer base. My question is, how will all the existing Hostess retailers and wholesalers feel about a new competitor whose mantra is price?
Clever move for both parties. Hostess significantly simplifies its operations by stepping gracefully out of the retail business, while gaining a larger distribution footprint. Big Lots adds an extra “destination factor” for shoppers that should help drive visits and basket size.
Promotion via social media is a natural part of this mix – particularly for younger consumers. Boomers like me are already imprinted on the brand, so all they need to do is put those creme-filled treats on display and let impulse take over.
Thinking about grabbing a Twinkie with lunch (alongside my kale salad).
If they’re going to be available everywhere, but at 40% off only at Big Lots, why tick off the hundred thousand or so other outlets that will be asked to carry them? I humbly ask. Going after the youth market is good; the Boomer generation is already sold. And it’s still a huge market.
It’s a smart move. Hostess should not be in the real estate and retail business. Discount chains are an organic retailer for the “the day-old bread store.” It’s an even better deal for Big Lots since it will provide them a point of differentiation amongst the discount chains.
Social media will help, but it will not be needed for the success of the partnership since Big Lot’s customers will provide the necessary traffic.
None of my kids have ever had a Twinkie. That said, I was asked to repeat “play” several times after all four came into my office yesterday after hearing the “Twinkies Time” YouTube video. One of my kids, who has also never visited a Big Lots store, asked if we might go to visit a local store, “Just to check it out.” Big Lots may be on to something with this creative.
Ate Twinkies, Cup Cakes, Fruit Pies, Snoballs, et al as a child and visited the Detroit-area Hostess Thrift Shop a time or two. From a distribution channel standpoint, this arrangement seems to make sense. What I don’t like about the Big Lots/Hostess “Thrift Shop” brand is that it has a brand connotation of “day old bread.” Perhaps that is one reason that Hostess was reluctant to reopen its own chain of Thrift Shops.
Not saying this branding issue can’t be solved but I think it is important for any food-related business to stress freshness and healthiness as major brand components. This could be an even more valuable relationship if they are able to dodge the day-old branding issue.