Ocean State Job Lot will open its first Calvert County store Saturday, cutting the ribbon on a new location in Prince Frederick’s Fox Run Shopping Center.
The ribbon-cutting is scheduled for 8:45 a.m. at 765 Solomons Island Road North, with a public celebration continuing through noon, according to a company announcement. The 38,322-square-foot store will be Ocean State Job Lot’s sixth in Maryland, following existing locations in Chester, Glen Burnie, Hagerstown, Easton and Elkton.
The site was previously home to Big Lots, which closed the location as part of the retailer’s 2024 bankruptcy proceedings. Ocean State Job Lot has been converting former Big Lots stores into its own locations across several states since acquiring a batch of the discount chain’s leases last year. The company signed leases in May for four additional stores, including Prince Frederick, that will bring its total former-Big-Lots conversions to 24 nationwide.
Calvert County Commissioner Mark Cox is expected to attend the ceremony, along with Ocean State Job Lot District Team Leader John Brown, Area Store Team Leader Tavarse Newman and Chief Marketing Officer Luke Estep, the company said. Cox, a District 2 representative, has served on the Calvert County Board of County Commissioners since December 2022.
Following the ribbon-cutting, the store plans family activities through noon, including coffee, doughnuts, glitter tattoos and photos with a costumed Woody character from the Toy Story franchise.
The company is also promoting opening-week incentives for shoppers who join its Job Lot Insider loyalty program. Customers who sign up and spend $30 or more will receive a gift card equal to 40% of that purchase, redeemable on a future visit, the company said. Separately, more than 1,000 items sold on the company’s website carry a 100% Job Lot Insider rebate, meaning a customer’s full purchase price on those specific items is returned as a gift card.
As part of the opening, the Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation plans to donate a pallet of nonperishable food to the Calvert Churches Community Food Pantry. The donation is being coordinated with Community Harvest Network, the Huntingtown-based nonprofit formerly known as End Hunger in Calvert County, according to the group’s own materials and Calvert County’s government website. Pantry Director Darryl Schenk is expected to take part in the ceremony, the company said.
Founded in Rhode Island in 1977, Ocean State Job Lot operates roughly 175 stores across 11 states in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, selling closeout and overstock merchandise including household goods, apparel, seasonal items and pantry staples. The privately held chain reports nearly 7,000 employees and annual sales exceeding $900 million.
The Prince Frederick opening is part of a broader push by the company into Southern Maryland and the wider Mid-Atlantic region. Company real estate leadership has said the former Big Lots sites let the chain move into new markets without new construction.
Ocean State Job Lot has said it expects to hire for up to 70 positions per new store, spanning store leadership, supervisory and full-time, part-time and seasonal associate roles, with online applications accepted as opening dates approach.
The store is located in the Fox Run Shopping Center, which sits along Solomons Island Road in Prince Frederick.
