By Hannah Claire Brimelow
Dollar General is one of the nation’s fastest growing and most profitable retailers.
The company has reported 31 years of growth consecutively and reported $33.75 Billion in sales during 2020.
Many Americans will recognize Dollar General’s signature bright yellow, rectangular sign. The stores – over 17,000 of them in the US – are frequently found along 2-lane country highways with very little else close to them. These locations are part of the company’s strategy for success.
“The company is bucking current retail trends and by expanding rapidly and opening stores away from population centers,” notes The Wall Street Journal. “Three quarters of Dollar Generals serve communities of 20,000 or less.”
“Dollar General go where Walmart are not,” says Sharon Terlep, a WSJ consumer products reporter. In fact, she points out that there are four times as many Dollar Generals and there are Walmarts in the United States.
In addition to seeking out area with inexpensive real estate, the company keeps cost down by leasing its store, selling a limited number of products which it purchases in bulk, and employing minimal numbers of staff members.
The stores are not always welcome in rural communities. Opponent of Dollar General say the stores do not provide healthy food options for residents and hurt local businesses. However, convenience appears to be king.
Although stores do not “sell the big-ticket items available at Walmart, like large TVs, bicycles or boats” NPR wrote in 2017, “some rural residents have to drive past two or three Dollar Generals to get to the closest Walmart. If they just need detergent and a few groceries, Dollar General can fulfill those needs.”
This year, the retailer announced a partnership with Feeding America to address food insecurity. “The partnership will enhance Feeding America’s rural hunger initiatives by providing more food donations to 95% of member food banks,” reports Supermarket News.
Dollar General says it expects to provide people in its markets with 20 million meals each year.
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What paper reported that story?
But 50,000 dollar generals 50 years ago had the buying power of about 200,000 dollar generals today. He could have kept some of that kept that buying power by invest in gold and silver .
I like Dollar General as well, but don’t know their politics. I try to go there, Aldi, and other small places. I hate spending forever in a mega store. It also helps having a butcher down the street and a big garden at home for fresh vegetables.
Pretty much the exact same thing for me in rural Virginia
😂
The two nearest to me (2-miles & 20-miles) offer fresh fruits, vegetables meat and dairy. Yes supplies are limited, but the nearest grocery store is about 25 miles away.
I love having a DG so close. It really helps but the company itself is cheap and they do not care about their employees. My boyfriend works there and they told him he has to keep the mask on until he gets vaxxed but he is refusing. We’ll see what happens next time to main district dude comes and sees him without a mask lol
Yes they are popping more stores up like crazy. I drive and deliver for dollar general and we are so short of drivers its insane so I’m not sure what this means for the future, I also don’t like how the employees at the store locations are treated ect.
My dad lives in rural Mississippi and he couldn’t be happier they put a Dollar Store near his house. Before that he had to drive 25 min to Walmart just to get some milk.
In 2021, it now takes five Dollar Generals to equal just one Dollar General from 2020. This is hyperdollargeneralinflation! Hedge yourself with Crypto General while you still can!
I’ve seen a dozen or more pop up in Marion County here in Oregon over the past 2 years.
A total of 5 in a town of 45k
No kidding this article reads like I wrote it
How great are Casey’s?
We just got one in town and off the interstate, that pizza kinda slaps
Dollar general just added 2 new stores to my town, they now form a ‘+’ shape on the map.
I fear the townsfolk will be sacrificed to the corn gods to keep prices low
It’s in an account you create with the service they use for authentification. You just set up an account with that site, then upload an image or pick an icon, usual stuff. I forget the site, starts with a “g” I think
Dumb question, but how did you change your avatar?
I once lived in Ohio, and these stores are everywhere.
Great stuff Hannah!
Russ…. no one likes a gramor natzi…
800 Person Town, Mid Iowa Rural. Getting a DG store… we already have a Caseys and Store…
The YouTube sketch comedy group “It’s a Southern Thing” did a video about the explosion of Dollar General stores back in 11/2019. It’s funny and worth a watch. They apparently saw this coming a while ago. lol I don’t know if posting links is against the rules, so I would simply suggest searching “It’s a Southern Thing Dollar General”.
Grammar and spelling guys:( can’t be making these mistakes so early
“that there are four times as many Dollar Generals there are Walmarts in the United States. ”
“that” should be removed and where was the editor with the error using “and” instead of “as.” You guys need some one that can see what is right in front of them. Good article otherwise!
All product from chynuh, chynuh numba won
“that there are four times as many Dollar Generals there are Walmarts in the United States. ”
“that” should be removed and were was the editor with the error using “and” instead of “as.” You guys need some one that can see what is right in front of them. Good article otherwise!
In the immortal words of the great Tim Pool… “come on copy editor guys”…LOL… Anyways my wife loves dollar general she goes there like 3 times a week… We live in Suffolk County NY on longisland so by me dollar general is no joke right next to 7-11…
In the immortal words of the great Tim Pool… “come on copy editor guys”…LOL… Anyways my wife loves dollars general she goes there like 3 times a week… We live in Suffolk County NY on longisland so by me dollar general is no joke right next to 7-11…
Southwest Illinois small town just under 10k population; we have two Dollar Generals. You can go from one to the other with a five-minute drive.
It’s funny to think that people who live in large cities might have no idea that dollar generals are found in the middle of no where. I work in remote areas and pass hundreds every week going to and from job sites
I pass like 3-4 on the way to work. half of those are brand new within the last couple years. How did they become so popular?
I live in a tiny town called senoia Georgia. We have 3 dollar generals here
Need a copy editor. Numerous grammatical errors throughout the article.
Old news. I heard I story last year about a community not being able to have a real grocery store ( fresh food) because competition from DG.
The worse part is the fact that the buy from there anyway. I suppose it’s an ignorance problem. We need a new way to keep companies in check because the government is now ran buy them. Sad face
The just opened one here in Norwood, MO. The first of it’s kind ever here in our rural town. Dollar General sure comes in handy for us. They source some things from china but I see a lot of made in USA also. They also employ local plus the checkout come with a option to add cash to my bank apps.
There are definitely a lot of Dollar General’s out by new in Florida and I live in a very rural area. My only problem with them is I wish they would promote American made products more.
Literally went this morning for cat food…it’s around the corner from where we live in rural NC – I can’t really do health grocery shopping there but yes for quick needs, everyday house items and cat needs I’m good with my DG. And they also don’t have terrible options if you need milk, almond milk, nuts, or tuna, or something you can find some healthy options for quick needs at least.
Holly shit. I had no idea they were so huge. There is one in my town of 7000 pop. Someone hit the big guard rail in the drive way, and even better someone drove into the wall right outside the refrigerator aisle. At least the drunk simpletons have somewhere nice to hang out and crash their cars that’s not our, “two lane county highway.”
Yeah, down in central Arkansas. I’ve got three in my small town. (two in town, and one just outside of town.)
They are going up everywhere.
They also have “Dollar General Market” which is a grocery store. What I find interesting about that is I have only seen them in larger cities, typically in the lower income areas. Perhaps they are buying dated stock from the major grocery stores in the area to supply the DCMs. Which would also explain why you do not see DCMs in rural areas because the cost of transport since major grocery chains are so far apart. Once again, that is just my speculation.
Yep they’re everywhere DG has been trying to buy a piece of property we own all year .Because of the location . They’ve been putting them in every few miles along the main rural roads especially in the Eastern Panhandle of WV .
Yup. Up in the rural areas of Northeastern PA, there are everywhere.
I wonder if they source products from china. Is there a store that even doesn’t do that??
Just FYI: Dollar General has banned My Pillow. I used to shop at our newly opened DG store weekly. I was so excited to have this option in our rural community. Sadly, no more.
I look forward to a time when companies no longer wade into politics.