It was founded in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, in 1982 by Morton Bernstein and Mark L. Butler with backing from Harry Coverman and Oliver E. "Ollie" Rosenberg; the latter of whom is the namesake of the company.

[4] Its selection of merchandise comprises a variety of discounted household goods, apparel, pet supplies, kitchen pantry staples, and seasonal products (holiday, gardening, patio, pool and beach supplies); a majority of these items are unsold or overstocked merchandise that is purchased in bulk from other retailers and sold at discounted prices.

[6] Ollie's Bargain Outlet acquired the assets of the defunct New England retailer Building 19, which had gone bankrupt in 2013.

Ollie's slogan "Good stuff cheap" and prominent use of caricatures of the founder making remarks intended to be amusing throughout the stores is directly taken from Building 19 advertising.

[10] The Ollie's Bargain Outlet business model involves purchasing merchandise directly from manufacturers and other retailers, such as Walmart/Sam's Club, Target, Kroger, Costco, Winn-Dixie, Publix, Whole Foods Market, and TJX-owned stores, in bulk and selling in smaller quantities to customers with the minimum operational and distribution costs; resulting in discounted products to be sold in Ollie's stores.