Beating walmart at it's own game, Family Dollar and Dollar General

[Gowen]

I am seeing these Dollar General and Family Dollar stores open up in small communities and I think they are going to hurt walmart.  There is one opening up near me.  The community has about 5000 people living in it.  The closest walmart is a 20 minute drive on the freeway, why drive that far if you can go 5 mins and get the few things you need?  Walmart may get the weekly shopping trip, but these guys will grab all the little money. 

[Brad Johnson]

The name brand stuff they carry is okay, but I've tried some of the uber cheap never-heard-of-the-brand products and they suck royally.  One that leaps to mind is cleaners... watered-down semi effective pseudo imitations of decent products.  You end up spending more over time. The product might cost half the more recognizeable brand, but it takes three times as much to do the same job.

Flyswatters, toilet brushes, etc. Sure. Stuff that has a really important job to do? Pass.

Brad

[BlueStarLizzard]

Doller General and Family Doller have been around a lot longer then Wallyworld.

They're not going to replace walmart.

Doller stores are pretty commen in rural areas. Around here BFE towns tend to be served by at least one Doller General, one Southern States, a gas station and not much else.

[Gowen]

I don't think they will replace walmart, I just think they are going to take a good chunk of money from them.

[BlueStarLizzard]

I don't think they will replace walmart, I just think they are going to take a good chunk of money from them.

My point is more along the lines that Walmart took the cash from them in the first place.

Again, those stores are nothing new.

[lee n. field]

"Dime stores"

[zahc]

Amazon is going to take the big money from walmart. Dollar stores are going to take the little money. The only thing left is groceries, so it just depends how that shakes out with the smaller grocers.

[RoadKingLarry]

Walmart is 30 minutes away, there are now 3 Dollar General stores along that route. In my little town we have one gas station/convenience store, one crappy grocery store and a Dollar General. The DG tried to get the city to lease them more of the building they are in but city didn't want them expanding and offering more competition to the chain grocery store. DG bought a parcel just outside city limits and built a nice new big building. Whoops.

[AJ Dual]

The name brand stuff they carry is okay, but I've tried some of the uber cheap never-heard-of-the-brand products and they suck royally. 

One of my favorite episodes...

[French G.]

Probably due to growing up semi-poor and rural I always attached a stigma to dollar stores since we weren't poor enough for that and gov't cheese. Now? Dollar General can cover most of my food staple needs minus fresh foods, I typically shop there once a week, it's 9 miles from me, Wal-mart is 50 miles from me. My Wal-mart (or Martin's if I'm rich) runs thus get limited to once a month. No DG cannot sell me produce, change my oil and tires, sell me a gun, lawnmower, and beer in the same cart(Murica!) but it's close and covers a lot of my needs. If I tried hard local farmer's market and a couple of shops sell local meat, I don't have to leave nowhere to get by.

[Levant]

I am seeing these Dollar General and Family Dollar stores open up in small communities and I think they are going to hurt walmart.  There is one opening up near me.  The community has about 5000 people living in it.  The closest walmart is a 20 minute drive on the freeway, why drive that far if you can go 5 mins and get the few things you need?  Walmart may get the weekly shopping trip, but these guys will grab all the little money. 

I remember visiting my in-laws when they lived in Rolla, MO maybe 35 years ago.  There was a Walmart in town that was about the size of a Dollar Store.  That is what Walmart was in those days.  They've gone from Dollar Store size to what they are now in the last 35 years.

[AJ Dual]

Walmart is supposedly getting back into the dollar store/small-footprint discount store arena.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/barbarathau/2012/11/06/dollar-chains-tap-smokes-booze-to-drive-sales-fight-wal-marts-small-format-stores/

Although I haven't seen one here yet, Walmart has just opened a few of the smaller grocery-only stores in the area. I think Dollar General's and Family Dollar's willingness to occupy any existing space that's available (Hardware stores that have gone out of business seems common around Milwaukee)  makes them a bit more nimble. I presume Walmart has to source the land and build everything to their pre-determined layouts even for these small stores.

[French G.]

DG seems very good at the low cost real estate game. Hard for WM to move into a small town where another store already is. Family Dollar not near as useful as DG, Dollar Tree is still a junk store found in the 'hood.

[AJ Dual]

DG seems very good at the low cost real estate game. Hard for WM to move into a small town where another store already is. Family Dollar not near as useful as DG, Dollar Tree is still a junk store found in the 'hood.

There might be ghetto Dollar Trees around here, but Wisconsinites are so notoriously stingy, there's several of them in nice areas. 

I will admit I make a run every two weeks for the $1 20oz Rip-Its energy drinks (Popular at FOB's in the sandbox, or so I hear), way better than paying $4 or more for the same sized Red Bull.

Cafffeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnnnn. 

[TechMan]

Walmart is supposedly getting back into the dollar store/small-footprint discount store arena.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/barbarathau/2012/11/06/dollar-chains-tap-smokes-booze-to-drive-sales-fight-wal-marts-small-format-stores/

Although I haven't seen one here yet, Walmart has just opened a few of the smaller grocery-only stores in the area. I think Dollar General's and Family Dollar's willingness to occupy any existing space that's available (Hardware stores that have gone out of business seems common around Milwaukee)  makes them a bit more nimble. I presume Walmart has to source the land and build everything to their pre-determined layouts even for these small stores.

I have yet to see the grocery only stores, we did have one of our Walmarts reduce their space by about half.  It is really weird to go shopping in since you can only use the left entrance to get into the store.

[Tallpine]

[we did have one of our Walmarts reduce their space by about half/quote]

In Billings, they just "remodeled" and now have about half the shelf space and inventory, and much wider aisles.   

[brimic]

Hmmm, never been in a Dollar store.

Do they have really weird people in them like Walmart- especially after midnight?
Its one of the reasons I like shopping at Wlamrt at night- circus sideshow.

[charby]

Hmmm, never been in a Dollar store.

Do they have really weird people in them like Walmart- especially after midnight?
Its one of the reasons I like shopping at Wlamrt at night- circus sideshow.

Where I work the workers are weirder than the customers.

[Perd Hapley]

Hmmm, never been in a Dollar store.

Do they have really weird people in them like Walmart- especially after midnight?

Don't think they're open that late.

[Tallpine]

Hmmm, never been in a Dollar store.

Do they have really weird people in them like Walmart- especially after midnight?
Its one of the reasons I like shopping at Wlamrt at night- circus sideshow.

I had never seen a DG until a few years ago visiting my dad in a small town in Texas.

[Jamisjockey]

We go to the dollar store for stupid disposable things, or for decorations for things like kid's parties. 
Helped my son build a soda-bottle fish trap yesterday.  Got the soda from the dollar store, since we were just pouring it out anyway.

[Scout26]

I go to ones for a few small things.   Aspirin (since I have to take one each day)  Why pay $4.95 for 100 at Wal-Greens (sorry Lupinus) when I can get 325 for $1.00 at DT/DG/FD?   (Used to get 500 for a $1.00, but there ain't no inflatin' going on here.)

And yes, I mostly buy disposable/single use crap, occasionally some canned goods and school supplies.  

[HankB]

I remember visiting my in-laws when they lived in Rolla, MO maybe 35 years ago.  There was a Walmart in town that was about the size of a Dollar Store.  That is what Walmart was in those days.  They've gone from Dollar Store size to what they are now in the last 35 years.

I don't remember Walmart stores being that small, but I do remember their ad campaigns which used to tout all the "MADE IN USA" products they carried.

As for the other cheap stores, my mother likes Dollar Tree because they carry greeting cards (birthday, get well, etc.) for $.50 - $1.00, rather than the inflated prices grocery and drug stores charge. Otherwise, what Brad said holds:

. . . Flyswatters, toilet brushes, etc. Sure. Stuff that has a really important job to do? Pass.

[Scout26]

8 years ago Wal-mart did $0 in groceries.

Now they are in the top 3 for Grocery sales (might even be #1)

My last few trips through Wal-mart I've seen these $1 bins of crap up by the check out lanes, seems like Wal-mart is going after the dollar stores.

[Triphammer]

Kmart started out as Kresge's (SP) back east. The epitome of the "Dime Store" Now Kmart owns Sears.  Stores/ markets change life goes on.