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Dollar-stores overcharge customers while promising low prices

(www.theguardian.com)
510 points bookofjoe | 7 comments | 07 Dec 25 14:37 UTC | HN request time: 0.514s | source | bottom
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regera ◴[07 Dec 25 21:07 UTC] No.46185157[source]▶
Dollar stores are private equity with a checkout lane.

In 2025, Dollar Tree sold Family Dollar to a group of private-equity firms: Brigade Capital Management, Macellum Capital Management and Arkhouse Management Co.

https://corporate.dollartree.com/news-media/press-releases/d...

It’s a business model cosplaying as poverty relief while quietly siphoning money from the people least able to lose it. They already run on a thin-staff, high-volume model. That 23% increase is not a glitch. They know their customers can’t drive across town to complain. They know the regulators won’t scale fines to revenue.

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1. antonvs ◴[07 Dec 25 22:23 UTC] No.46185872[source]▶
> cosplaying as poverty relief

Does it really? Who says this, and who believes it?

replies(2): >>46185920 #>>46186766 #
2. WarOnPrivacy ◴[07 Dec 25 22:27 UTC] No.46185920[source]▶
>> cosplaying as poverty relief

> Does it really? Who says this

(search engine: 22 relevant results in 0.85s.)

    we’re here to provide affordable and convenient access to name brands,
    DG’s private brands, nutritious foods, household essentials and more.
ref: https://www.dollargeneral.com/hereforwhatmatters
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3. gruez ◴[07 Dec 25 22:38 UTC] No.46186023[source]▶
>we’re here to provide affordable and convenient access [...]

You'd have to be incredibly naive to interpret that as "poverty relief".

4. antonvs ◴[07 Dec 25 22:54 UTC] No.46186159[source]▶
> search engine: 22 relevant results in 0.85s.

Being able to understand what those results mean is the important part.

5. array_key_first ◴[08 Dec 25 00:04 UTC] No.46186766[source]▶
I mean, it's in the name.
replies(1): >>46187150 #
6. antonvs ◴[08 Dec 25 01:02 UTC] No.46187150[source]▶
You’d have to explain why you believe that. Just because someone in poverty can afford to purchase items in the store, doesn’t mean it’s good value, i.e. it’s not necessarily providing relief from poverty. In fact, it’s the opposite. See e.g. “How the dollar-store industry overcharges cash-strapped customers while promising low prices”:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/03/customers-pa...

7. carlosjobim ◴[08 Dec 25 08:41 UTC] No.46189889[source]▶
That's how every super market or grocery store in the entire world would describe their business.