Big Lots Launches Big Lots Latino
By Brianna Ahearn, contributing writer
Big Lots, the discount and close-out retailer, has just announced the expansion of their online presence with the arrival of their new website, Big Lots Latino. The website is an information hub geared toward their Hispanic-speaking customers. The retailer has gone bilingual in an effort to reach more of their customer population, particularly as a large portion of the U.S. population speaks Spanish. Big Lots shared the news of their new site with a press release this week.
Big Lots Latino can now be accessed by customers by visiting Latino.BigLots.com. The website features an information hub of information on beauty and health, food, crafts, decorating and more. Big Lots teamed up with well-known Latina bloggers in these categories to create informative posts with tips and tricks. Visitors to Big Lots Latino will be able read posts by Kathy Cano-Murillo of Crafty Chica, Pattie Cordova of Living Mi Vida Loca, and Rocio Chavez of Your Sassy Self.
With Big Lots Latino, it was important for the retailer to start a conversation that all of their customers can understand, and provide actionable content their customers could use. Like the English website, Big Lots Latino currently doesn't offer online ordering, though that could come in the future as Big Lots expands into e-commerce. Instead, the Spanish language website operates similar to the English website, with product information, an online circular, and more.
“Big Lots wants to be a part of the online conversations our customers are having about our brands,” says Andrew Stein, Big Lots Senior Vice President, Chief Customer Officer. "As a leading discount retailer, it's important for us to understand what resonates with her and deliver information in ways that help her make more informed purchasing decisions."
The Columbus-based retailer welcomed Stein in 2013 , and began revamping their online presence. Stein was a member of the team behind the buzz-worthy viral K-Mart campaign “Ship My Pants” the same year. When he came board with Big Lots, he was put in charge of the retailer's marketing, brand development and advertising. These tasks included improving Big Lots' online presence at BigLots.com, social media, and digital marketing.
Upon hiring Stein in 2013, Big Lots CEO David Campisi said that Stein would “reinvigorate the Big Lots brand with our core customer and reintroduce us to a customer segment that hasn’t been fully engaged recently.” The launch of Big Lots Latino seems to echo this promise.
As more retailers see their multicultural customer base grow, stores are beginning to offer Spanish language websites. Companies such as Walmart,Walgreens and Office Depot have Spanish language pages available as traditionally this approach has been favored by retailers with an international presence, however, Big Lots' stores are only located in 48 states and throughout Canada. Their addition of Big Lots Latino to their online presence means they're committed to expanding their reach of their customer base.
Alongside the arrival of Big Lots Latino, the retailer also launched two new social media accounts on Facebook (http://Facebook.com/BigLotsLatino) and Twitter (http://Twitter.com/BigLotsLatino) , with Spanish language content.