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A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

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Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#131

Post by eikenberry »

NicoJuicy wrote: post #127
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…

Aren't there any local (small) stores? I can't believe everything has to be a big "chain". Here in Europe, there are a lot of SMB's that fill in the gap of "fresh food". Although they are a little bit more expensive, they are always good enough to fill this requirement.

There were. The problem is that Walmart moved in and drove them all out of business, then realized that the market wasn't big enough and closed the stores leaving nothing.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#132

Post by iicc »

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

They are more stupid than they would be if they weren't struggling.

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2013/08/29/poor-concentration...

> On average, a person preoccupied with money problems exhibited a drop in cognitive function similar to a 13-point dip in IQ, or the loss of an entire night’s sleep.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#133

Post by diydsp »

iguy wrote: post #123
dorchadas wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. It's one of the biggest issues in trying to help people out of poverty. As Sam Vimes's "Boot Theory" sums it up: >The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. >Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for…

I like the boot story as much as the next guy, but is this actually true in the real world? By which I mean something like this: In what categories of products do rich people actually spend less than poor people? Are there any? It's certainly true that top-end clothing lasts longer than cheap stuff. But the people who buy it like nice things, and variety. Maybe car repairs? But probably a trick of counting the new-ca…

it's all an information game of continuously and strategically evaluating every purchase!

i buy almonds at the indian grocery for $5/lb in 3lb qty rather than $7. i drive a used toyota camry even though it's boring as hell but low $/mile.

heck part of the value of desktop pcs is their modularity... there's also a subreddit called buyitonce iir.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#134

Post by mcherm »

rofo1 wrote: post #125
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…

An oatmeal recipe that I also consume for years: oatmeal, chocolate pillows (less than 5g sugar in total; that means around 10 of them (with the brand I use at least)), nuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, and some milk - not a lot of milk, though. To me, it tastes perfectly and has high content of fiber, protein and carbs, keeps you full for quite some time. Generally healthy and cheap.

What is a "pillow"? Do you have a recipe?

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#135

Post by kbos87 »

This article is maddening on many levels. All they manage to prove is that dollar stores, like many other types of stores, go where they perceive their customers to be. They aren’t a causative factor behind poverty or racial segregation, though they managed to inject that deeply into the storyline.

I dislike dollar stores, but not for any of the reasons listed here. The folks pushing back in Vermont aren’t angry about dollar stores for the reasons being dissected in this piece - instead, they seem to dislike massive, soulless retail chains showing up and profiting off their community.

How about instead writing about the fact that Whole Foods doesn’t open retail stores in communities of color? That probably doesn’t play as well to their affluent white audience who probably has disdain for dollar stores but shops at Whole Foods on the regular.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#136

Post by azeotropic »

hakfoo wrote: post #87
dclowd9901 wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“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 sp…

But that doesn't mean that a company with the resources of Kroger couldn't also manage a brand that aimed significantly lower. In Arizona, there's a local grocery chain (Bashas') that's been around since before WWII. They have three very distinct brands-- the mainstream brand, a decidedly lower-class brand with a string Hispanic focus, and a deluxe brand which seems to target a more foodie, but similarly affluent aud…

Kroger Co. does manage several brands (including jewelry stores), but sold off their convenience store brands just this year.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#137

Post by fgheorghe »

NicoJuicy wrote: post #127
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…

Aren't there any local (small) stores? I can't believe everything has to be a big "chain". Here in Europe, there are a lot of SMB's that fill in the gap of "fresh food". Although they are a little bit more expensive, they are always good enough to fill this requirement.

In western europe these small stores, called off license in the uk, are usually cheap and low quality. Often selling counterfit products or expired food.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#138

Post by DanBC »

iguy wrote: post #123
dorchadas wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. It's one of the biggest issues in trying to help people out of poverty. As Sam Vimes's "Boot Theory" sums it up: >The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. >Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for…

I like the boot story as much as the next guy, but is this actually true in the real world? By which I mean something like this: In what categories of products do rich people actually spend less than poor people? Are there any? It's certainly true that top-end clothing lasts longer than cheap stuff. But the people who buy it like nice things, and variety. Maybe car repairs? But probably a trick of counting the new-ca…

Rich people can afford to buy white goods. They can buy online using a credit card (and pay off the balance before they're charged interest).

Poor people have to buy on hire purchase or using payday loans, which end up being significantly more expensive.

Wealthy people in the UK can buy their utilities using direct debit, which is normally cheaper than paying the bill as it comes in. Poor people may be on a pre-payment token meter. These used to be more expensive than a normal bill.

There's a bunch of stuff like this.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#139

Post by oh_sigh »

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.

Not only purchasing power but shrinkage increases dramatically in poorer areas.

Re: A Dollar Store Backlash Has Begun

#140

Post by iguy »

hajile wrote: post #88
dclowd9901 wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“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 sp…

Compare prices between a Dollar General in a poor neighborhood and a walmart. One of those is going to be 30% higher (even more on some things). Supermarkets have a net profit of 1-2%. If walmart could charge 30% more for the same thing, they'd build in poor neighborhoods every time. They don't because the risk is too high when a store a couple minutes away offers lower overhead, lower prices and lower risk. Walmart…

You're making a lot of different claims here. You may be right about insurance etc, although the rent will be lower too... but I think there are much simpler explanations for why some things are more expensive in the shops in poorer neighbourhoods.

Staff are a big expense anywhere, and if they spend their time on $10 purchases instead of $100 purchases, then the margins have to be higher. That's basically why Costco is cheaper than 7/11. Isn't this just the same thing?

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