Description of Business - Additional Information (Detail)	9 Months Ended
	Oct. 01, 2017 ft² Store Segment
Description Of Business [Line Items]
Number of operating stores | Store	432
Area of traditional sporting goods store | ft²	11,000
Number of reportable segment | Segment	1
Big 5 Corp [Member]
Description Of Business [Line Items]
Subsidiary interest ownership percentage	100.00%
Big 5 Service Corp [Member]
Description Of Business [Line Items]
Subsidiary interest ownership percentage	100.00%