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A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

citylab.com

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Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#71

Post by throw-far-away »

nate_meurer wrote: post #42

I normally like CityLab, but the tone of this article really grates on me. Calling dollar stores parasites? The article casually notes that without these stores many poor or minority communities would be true retail deserts, but it offers no workable alternatives. Only invective. Every Dollar General I've ever been in has dairy, eggs, a competent selection of canned and dry goods (pasta, beans, etc), baking goods, an…

IKR. The article comes off as some serious FUD rhetoric judging, perhaps for animosity-seeking clickbait sharing/engagement? They're discount retailers and not hiding this fact. Dollar stores are awesome whether you're poor and it's all your can afford or stingy rich. They're demonstrably better than full-price grocery and hypermarts that are most definitely parasites.

Maaybe they are a symptom of income inequality but they're not a cause of it or worsening it.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#72

Post by dclowd9901 »

hajile wrote: post #47
drb91 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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

Why are products more expensive in poor neighborhoods? If there were real profits to be reaped, certainly stores would be moving in and enjoying high profit margins rather than leaving. The answer should lie elsewhere and it does. Cost of doing business in those neighborhoods is very high. Vandalism and robbery jack up insurance rates. Companies don't want to deliver there because they don't want the risk, so they ch…

“Cost of doing business in those neighborhoods is very high. Vandalism and robbery jack up insurance rates.“

Oof. I was with you til this. For a large grocery store chain, the occasional vandalism/shoplifting incident is nothing. Built into the price, as they say.

The real reason they don’t operate in these areas is because a poor community spends less money than a rich community. If you have to stretch your floor space buck, you want to operate 1) in the market gap you work best in and 2) the area of best fit for that market. A Kroger, if you will, serves middle class America. Their stock, their prices, their marketing and everything else they do operates at that market. However you might see a Kroger operating in an area a bit beneath their target. You won’t ever, however, see a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s anywhere near a poorer community.

So Dollar General and the like are filling a previously neglected niche that used to be filled by small bodegas and mercados.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#73

Post by chrisco255 »

dev_dull wrote: post #70

> “It advertises hard-to-beat low prices but it offers little in terms of fresh produce and nutritious items—further trapping residents in a cycle of poverty and ill-health.” The elitism here is sickening. Why shouldn’t the author just come out and say “We know what’s best and have to control the stores around poor people or they might buy junk food.” I hope people who think this way never end up in a position to inf…

They do...they're called Democrats. Haha in all seriousness... people who write things like this have no idea what it's like to live poor in general. Or to live in an area where Dollar General is the closest thing for 30 miles. They're not the cause of poverty, they're one of the few stores that will open a business in unserved communities.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#74

Post by rtpg »

dclowd9901 wrote: post #66
K9DRDOh wrote: post #59

I must have missed something in the article. the main cons I gleaned are - some items are not as cheap as walmat/costco like Fluor - they dont create as much jobs as traditional grocery stoes ( 9 vs 14) I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar and judging by the demand it (Dollar store) is providing a valuable service. I take another e…

“I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar and judging by the demand it (Dollar store) is providing a valuable service.” I don’t believe this assumption is correct, but I also don’t think the individuals are stupid. It’s still true, however, that one can act against their long term interests when they are too poor to consider the long t…

Cash flow problems compound extremely quickly and a lot of “everyday” stuff ends up hitting this quickly.

If you’re scraping by in normal circumstances and then have any car trouble, you’ll probably end up buying the 6 pack of eggs instead of 12 pack, simply because you can’t afford 12

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#75

Post by GeekyBear »

scythe wrote: post #28
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.

Peel and dice an apple and add a bit of brown sugar and cinnamon to your water and simmer before you add the oatmeal.

If that still seems dull add a big spoon full of peanut butter to your serving bowl.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#76

Post by scythe »

GeekyBear wrote: post #75
scythe wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Peel and dice an apple and add a bit of brown sugar and cinnamon to your water and simmer before you add the oatmeal. If that still seems dull add a big spoon full of peanut butter to your serving bowl.

I usually use frozen blueberries and chopped nuts, but apple/PB is good too.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#77

Post by saryant »

ravenstine wrote: post #67
K9DRDOh wrote: post #59

I must have missed something in the article. the main cons I gleaned are - some items are not as cheap as walmat/costco like Fluor - they dont create as much jobs as traditional grocery stoes ( 9 vs 14) I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar and judging by the demand it (Dollar store) is providing a valuable service. I take another e…

> I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar One might assume. Possibly the biggest trouble of dollar stores is that a lot of the "deals" are the result of simply selling things in smaller quantities. The next time you visit a Dollar Tree, compare the actual amount that you get for something like flour, oatmeal, detergent... really anyth…

The price per unit may be higher but for someone with limited cash and no credit, that may still be a better option.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#78

Post by yesenadam »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #55

“What if we went to these neighborhoods and didn't assume that poor people or communities of color do not want to eat healthy?” You can lead a horse to water. You cannot make it drink. I don't know how to fix this. I grew up in a home where food was very important. There was a garden out back and my mother cooked from scratch, etc. In recent years, I've been quite poor, including spending some of that time homeless.…

I lived on $2 a day for a couple of years[0], that was left after rent, bills and tobacco. Tobacco is taxed out the wazoo here in Australia, $30+ a bag. I didn't think about stopping.. As long as you can afford a luxury like that, you have your human dignity. Or something like that. Maybe if a bag of oranges was $35 and tobacco $3, fruit would be the essential luxury..

"The only thing that can console one for being poor is extravagance. The only thing that can console one for being rich is economy." - Oscar Wilde, A Few Maxims for the Instruction of the Over-Educated

[0] I survived on pasta, home-made cereal (e.g. wheat germ + shredded coconut) and friends taking me out to lunch.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#79

Post by mehwoot »

analognoise wrote: post #52
harlanji wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is why I prefer being homeless in the Bay Area to going anywhere else to live for cheap, as people invite me. I spent like 4 days in a nice place in GA, in a downtown without baguettes, and came right back. I can shop at organic markets and coops everywhere. The high rent is a better cost than gas when housed.

Wait...what? You're homeless and chose to leave a nice place because it had a downtown without baguettes? I mean we've all got our priorities but that sounds like perhaps you should examine your "needs" column more strongly.

Some people really like baguettes. Life is just about priorities

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#80

Post by jeswin »

ravenstine wrote: post #67
K9DRDOh wrote: post #59

I must have missed something in the article. the main cons I gleaned are - some items are not as cheap as walmat/costco like Fluor - they dont create as much jobs as traditional grocery stoes ( 9 vs 14) I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar and judging by the demand it (Dollar store) is providing a valuable service. I take another e…

> I assume the folks who are struggling are not stupid .. and have looked at every conceivable way of stretching their dollar One might assume. Possibly the biggest trouble of dollar stores is that a lot of the "deals" are the result of simply selling things in smaller quantities. The next time you visit a Dollar Tree, compare the actual amount that you get for something like flour, oatmeal, detergent... really anyth…

> The next time you visit a Dollar Tree, compare the actual amount that you get for something like flour, oatmeal, detergent... really anything, to the sizes sold at normal stores.

Many financially constrained people have a cash flow problem - they often end up spending more as you said.

However, buying larger quantities is still not an option because the money is simply not there. Being able to plan out a month is a luxury in some ways.

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