Dollar General's newest shoppers: People making $100,000 a year

[brooklynite]

CNN

Middle-income and wealthier shoppers, pinched by inflation, are shopping more at Dollar General for essentials and discretionary items.

Dollar General (DG) CEO Todd Vasos this week said the retail giant has been attracting customers earning $100,000 a year in recent weeks. Inflation has pushed up prices for groceries and gas, and now these shoppers are turning to Dollar General and others to try to save money.

"The highest trade-in that we've seen and the most robust has actually been between the $75,000 and $100,000 group," Vasos said at a retail conference Wednesday. Some of these customers first shopped at Dollar General earlier in the pandemic and have now returned, he added.

Dollar General has been a lifeline for lower-income shoppers, particularly in rural areas with few other retail options. The company says its "core customer" makes under $40,000 a year.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. Dollar General? Too pricey. Make mine the Dollar-twenty-five Tree.

I was in there last Saturday. $1.25. No, they did not increase sizes.

[Archae]

2. I live only a couple blocks from a Big Lots.

There were times a couple years ago I could go in, and except from the staff, I'd be the only one in there.

Nowadays the Big Lots usually has at least a half-dozen or more customers.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

3. The biggest grocery chain around Chicago has taken advantage of inflation to...

...do a bit of gouging. I've been taking as much of my business elsewhere as I can mostly on general principles. Dollar Tree's usually worth a peek for this and that but you have to be a discerning shopper.

[Midnight Writer]

4. Round here is one Walmart Supercenter and three Dollar General stores. Not much else.

Walmart is a couple miles out, by the highway. It's a major hassle to even navigate the parking lot, and when you get inside the store, you are sure to run into some rude, crude and loud people. It is crowded and there are lines at the check-outs.

It is so much simpler to park in front of the Dollar General, run in, grab what you need, no lines, no crowds, no hassles. In and out.

[ProfessorGAC]

5. Location Seems A Likely Contributor

There are now 2 DG stores in our town.
Before 5 years ago, there was nowhere to get such goods, except for some personal care products, or things like candy & snacks, at an overpriced pharmacy.
Now, it’s not at all unusual to see nice expensive cars parked in front of both.
There is a similar phenomenon at 4 or 5 other bedroom communities within 20 miles from here.
So, I think mere convenience is a much greater lever on their success around here, than does inflation.