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A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

citylab.com

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Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#21

Post by koolba »

pascalxus wrote: post #5
njarboe wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"consumers prefer processed foods, sodas, chips, things placed in boxes and plastic" These things also last on the shelves for a very long time. Grains can store well, but other products like meat, fruits, vegetables, quality baked goods, etc. don't.

meat is carcinogenic. as for fruits and vegetables, i'm hoping that someday the local food production revolution will start picking up steam and help make these more cost effective, perhaps with some automation or vertical farming. for now, focus on things you can get for less than 1$/lb like bananas, apples, bell peppers, onions, cauliflower/broccoli (when it's on sale). Cabbage 50c/lb even here in CA.

Toasted whole grain bread from organic grains grown, milled and baked in your local community is also carcinogenic.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#22

Post by brad0 »

war1025 wrote: post #18
vraylle wrote: post #9

I don't know about other areas, but here in the middle of Oklahoma the Dollar Generals have been a real positive. There's a lot of rural areas where a Walmart came in, then folded later. It left a 1-2 hour drive to get buy any kind of "real" food. The DG stores here have been expanding to include an actual grocery section, including fresh produce and (limited) fresh meat. More is available frozen. They have excellent…

Here in rural Iowa, Dollar General also has claimed the niche of "less stuff, but also nearby". You can either drive 5 minutes into town and go to the Dollar General for most of your basic needs, or you can drive a half hour to the nearest city with a Walmart / Target / etc. I really quite like stopping by to grab a quick thing or two. Around here, there tends to be a local grocery chain in the same vicinity, so gene…

I’m curious, what do you do for work in Iowa?

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#23

Post by benatkin »

I think there's enough clearanace stuff there that it might be helping to cut down on waste. It's surprising how much junk there is there, and much of it looks like it wasn't intended to wind up at a dollar store. If not for a dollar store would it wind up at a landfill?

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#25

Post by cmclaughlin »

PenguinCoder wrote: post #12
beart wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps OP was referring to bacon?

In that case, I would be better stated that nitrates are carcinogens not bacon itself.

And nitrates are likely only carcinogenic if cooked at very high heat, i.e don’t burn your bacon and best not to eat cured too often anyway.

Source: On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#26

Post by HarryHirsch »

drb91 wrote: post #13
anilshanbhag wrote: post #10

It's fairly obvious that grocery stores would not want to be in poor neighborhoods. This article paints it all as segregation / race issue which is inaccurate where it is really an issue of purchasing power of the community. While many poor neighborhoods are communities of color - dollar stores have their origin and largest footprint in rural America which is predominantly white.

> It's fairly obvious that grocery stores would not want to be in poor neighborhoods. Why not, for us clueless people?

It's the low purchasing power of the customer base, and a higher proportion of theft, shrinkage and vandalism in poorer neighbourhoods eroding profits further. Profit margin on grocery items isn't high to begin with.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#27

Post by Lazare »

pascalxus wrote: post #3

You really have to differentiate between the food that's offered at a dollar store and everything else. I shop at the dollar store for things like shampoo, deodrant, toothpaste and it's superb deal, not in any way making me poorer. on the contrary it saves me money. for groceries, you should shop somewhere else, unless your looking for dog food. the reason there aren't more grocery stores selling good food is because…

Yep. Minneapolis recently experimented with requiring all stores selling food in the city to stock some "fresh/healthy" foods. It's been a disaster; it turns out that the reason these products weren't being stocked is because people don't want to buy them. Force stores to devote some of their limited shelf space to expensive, perishable items, and people still won't buy them, but now the prices on all other items has to go up to make up for the wasted expired food that gets thrown out.

These sorts of policies hurt the poor, and to a lesser extent, small businesses, while helping no one. And yelling about Dollar General is going to have the same result (if it has any impact at all).

> Once we start choosing good foods, stores will have no choice but to start selling more of that. Let the backlash begin!

Yep.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#28

Post by scythe »

pascalxus wrote: post #3

You really have to differentiate between the food that's offered at a dollar store and everything else. I shop at the dollar store for things like shampoo, deodrant, toothpaste and it's superb deal, not in any way making me poorer. on the contrary it saves me money. for groceries, you should shop somewhere else, unless your looking for dog food. the reason there aren't more grocery stores selling good food is because…

I love oatmeal and eat loads of it, but we really need to avoid telling poorly-informed people that the path to cheap nutrition is to eat bland goo. You might think about it as a rhetorical example, but you need to remember that people won't remember what you say, only how you make them feel. The salient imagery in your post is living on unflavored oatmeal, and that's not appealing to anyone.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#29

Post by Spooky23 »

anilshanbhag wrote: post #10

It's fairly obvious that grocery stores would not want to be in poor neighborhoods. This article paints it all as segregation / race issue which is inaccurate where it is really an issue of purchasing power of the community. While many poor neighborhoods are communities of color - dollar stores have their origin and largest footprint in rural America which is predominantly white.

The big dollar store chains are mostly real estate schemes.

Inner city urban areas are served by bodegas and dollar stores. It’s not about consumer buying power — the margins are actually higher for these stores. The issue is that the grocery store model doesn’t work in the traditional 20,000-30,000 urban footprint anymore, as nobody can compete with WalMart for the stuff in the aisles.

Instead of enhancing margins with fancy cheese and overpriced pre-prepared fresh food, bodegas cash in on convenience faire, lotto, tobacco, etc. The rural equivalent is the super size gas station.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#30

Post by markbnj »

We hardly have grocery stores anymore even here in affluent north-central New Jersey. Walmart, Sams, and Target came in, and quite a few of the old line stores closed, helped along by the A&P debacle. Then they closed the Sam's near us, so the nearest market that sells fresh food is around 10 miles away. I'm no expert on the economics of selling food, but the current situation seems like a lot to lay on the dollar stores.
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