3 ms·

Anecdotally... I have a close friend who is a PhD, has tens of thousands in the bank, a great job, and absolutely loves the dollar store.

samstave 9y ago
I love daiso - the Japanese dollar store. It's amazing.
- coffeevradar 9y ago
  Except that they charge $1.50 for everything. Which is only annoying because similar stores in Japan (which for me are a highlight of any trip to Japan) only charge ¥100. I don't know if it's because of proximity to China or because Daiso knows they're offering better stuff than their literally $1 competitors here in the U.S.
- clairity 9y ago
  daiso is great. in LA, we now also have http://miniso.com/ http://miniso.com/ (which i'm sure will expand to other major US cities soon).
- stevenwoo 9y ago
  Thanks for that - there's one near me in Mountain View but I could not for the life of me tell what Daiso was from window shopping while going on trips to Trader Joes.
madcaptenor 9y ago
That's probably part of why your friend has lots of money in the bank.
notyourday 9y ago
Q: Why does the guy with a Black Amex shop in a Walmart? A: Because he is the guy with a Black Amex
- DarronWyke 9y ago
  Exactly. How does someone with money stay in money? Buy it cheap, stack it deep. Get stuff for super cheap and get a lot of it while it's cheap, so you don't have to buy it again when it's much more expensive, and can wait for it to be cheaper again.
  - notyourday 9y ago
    That's a foreign concept to people who bitch how poor they are while making $150k/year.
- majormajor 9y ago
  That's not the right comparison. The reported spend level for that card is $250,000 a year. Spending 250K on a credit card annually is not living frugally. "You get rich by saving what you have" is a nice feel-good story, but you get a lot richer by getting magnitudes more in income.
  - tsunamifury 9y ago
    Thank you, this string was beginning to sound like r/personalfinance was leaking -- a place where people think they can save their way to ultra-wealth. You can be frugal enough to live a comfortable middle class lifestyle -- but the people who are rich just make a ton more than you. That's it, that's the secret!
  - notyourday 9y ago
    You do realize that AWS and GCP take credit cards? If it was just that you are already at sub $25k/mo.
fma 9y ago
You would need to know what to buy. Helium balloons...$1. Greeting cards, $.50, there are certain things that are much cheaper at Dollar Tree than else where. There are some items that they get you to splurge on impulse on that have a higher profit...Some candy you can get for $.70 at Walmart is $1 at Dollar Tree.
- Sohcahtoa82 9y ago
  IMO, the best ting to get at Dollar Tree are gift bags. $1 for something that's usually $5-12 anywhere else!
- code_duck 9y ago
  I have noticed that too. Some items are a good deal, some are average, and some overpriced relative to standard discount stores. Clearly Dollar Tree cuts the corner on materials and durability. The items I am pleased are things like ceramic or glass dishes that are painted slightly imperfectly.

samstave 9y ago

I love daiso - the Japanese dollar store. It's amazing.

coffeevradar 9y ago
Except that they charge $1.50 for everything. Which is only annoying because similar stores in Japan (which for me are a highlight of any trip to Japan) only charge ¥100. I don't know if it's because of proximity to China or because Daiso knows they're offering better stuff than their literally $1 competitors here in the U.S.
clairity 9y ago
daiso is great. in LA, we now also have http://miniso.com/ http://miniso.com/ (which i'm sure will expand to other major US cities soon).
stevenwoo 9y ago
Thanks for that - there's one near me in Mountain View but I could not for the life of me tell what Daiso was from window shopping while going on trips to Trader Joes.

madcaptenor 9y ago

That's probably part of why your friend has lots of money in the bank.

notyourday 9y ago

Q: Why does the guy with a Black Amex shop in a Walmart? A: Because he is the guy with a Black Amex

DarronWyke 9y ago
Exactly. How does someone with money stay in money? Buy it cheap, stack it deep. Get stuff for super cheap and get a lot of it while it's cheap, so you don't have to buy it again when it's much more expensive, and can wait for it to be cheaper again.
- notyourday 9y ago
  That's a foreign concept to people who bitch how poor they are while making $150k/year.
majormajor 9y ago
That's not the right comparison. The reported spend level for that card is $250,000 a year. Spending 250K on a credit card annually is not living frugally. "You get rich by saving what you have" is a nice feel-good story, but you get a lot richer by getting magnitudes more in income.
- tsunamifury 9y ago
  Thank you, this string was beginning to sound like r/personalfinance was leaking -- a place where people think they can save their way to ultra-wealth. You can be frugal enough to live a comfortable middle class lifestyle -- but the people who are rich just make a ton more than you. That's it, that's the secret!
- notyourday 9y ago
  You do realize that AWS and GCP take credit cards? If it was just that you are already at sub $25k/mo.

fma 9y ago

You would need to know what to buy. Helium balloons...$1. Greeting cards, $.50, there are certain things that are much cheaper at Dollar Tree than else where. There are some items that they get you to splurge on impulse on that have a higher profit...Some candy you can get for $.70 at Walmart is $1 at Dollar Tree.

Sohcahtoa82 9y ago
IMO, the best ting to get at Dollar Tree are gift bags. $1 for something that's usually $5-12 anywhere else!
code_duck 9y ago
I have noticed that too. Some items are a good deal, some are average, and some overpriced relative to standard discount stores. Clearly Dollar Tree cuts the corner on materials and durability. The items I am pleased are things like ceramic or glass dishes that are painted slightly imperfectly.