The two largest chains of dollar stores in the country posted higher sales and profits in their latest quarter, a sign that consumers are flocking to discount retailers as rapid inflation eats into their budgets
A Dollar General truck in Eliot, Maine on Sept. 21, 2021. American shoppers are gravitating toward less expensive stores as inflation drives up rents and grocery costs. (Simon Simard/The New York Times)
The two largest chains of dollar stores in the country posted higher sales and profits in their latest quarter, a sign that consumers are flocking to discount retailers as rapid inflation eats into their budgets.
Tellingly, both companies said Thursday that higher-income shoppers were visiting their stores more frequently. The dollar-store business model — to attract consumers in rural areas and neighborhoods with fewer shopping options by offering prices that are lower than at local retailers — is designed to work even when its customers are hurting financially, as many are with inflation running stubbornly high.
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