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Is it elitist if there's a real problem in stores that appeal most to the poor and disadvantaged? I don't know how they operate in the US, or the range carried,

Is it elitist if there's a real problem in stores that appeal most to the poor and disadvantaged? I don't know how they operate in the US, or the range carried, and the article doesn't expand too far, but... If US dollar stores are anything like UK pound stores, they are vastly more expensive for food than the discount supermarkets -- Aldi, Lidl, Iceland and similar. They're OK to great value for many non-food things, like a cheap spare pair of reading glasses, notebook, pencils or USB cable etc. If there's a pound store it's fairly safe bet one of the above three supermarkets will have an outlet not too far away too. Nearly all the food they sell is a custom, pound store only size, and the price per gram or litre is pathetic for anyone lacking funds. They trade on appearing to offer price advantage, perhaps 10p or 20p in the pound cheaper than the supermarket, by cutting 25 or 35% of the product. If you aren't comparing price/unit you're basically getting scammed by poundstores on all food and drink. Of course they appeal most to the section of society most uncomfortable with maths by seeming cheap, even if the truth is on the small print of the shelf label. They positively drip with unhealthy only options. Miles of chocolate, cereal, milk shake, soft drinks, tinned beans. No veg, no rice, no pasta, pulses, low sugar soft drinks, milk itself.

Danieru 7y ago
Indeed! Not only are they more expensive per unit, but they go even further by only offering the higher margin food in the first place. Dollar Stores are often predatory for food. Regular grocery stores already operate on thin margins. Dollar stores are preying on those trying to save money by being closer and easier to get to. All while deceiving poor people on the true cost of their food. All things equal Dollar Stores would be fine, but they pull the oxygen out of the market for proper low margin grocery stores.
JamesBarney 7y ago
I really think banning poor individuals from choosing to shop at a dollar store because you assume you know better is elitism.
- vinay427 7y ago
  I might agree with this perspective if third-parties weren't involved, but unfortunately when dependents, often children, are added into the mix I think there is some justification for regulating away options that (at least objectively) can be harmful.
  - useragent86 7y ago
    Isn't it elitist to presume that you know how children should be raised better than their parents do?
    - extra88 7y ago
      If it’s elitist to listen to people who have researched a subject (nutritionists, public health experts, etc.) rather than every person who has produced offspring, so be it.
      - useragent86 7y ago
        It's not elitist to listen to them. It is elitist to force others to do so.
      - JamesBarney 7y ago
        Experts have no idea if banning dollar stores will improve the diet of people in the neighborhood, no idea if even if it improves diet that will lead to measureable health outcomes. And even if it leads to measurable effects that those effects are large enough to be worth the inconvenience of not being able to go to a dollar store. Researchers don't know if even one of those causal links is real, much less all of them.
        extra88 7y ago
        What is the basis for your claim that "experts" have no idea if banning will work? The posted article was written to counter stories about efforts to limit dollar stores and encourage full-service grocery stores. The story's tool is a paper [0] by economists who analyzed data and found that access to full-service grocery stores does not make a meaningful difference. So those experts (economists) think they do any have idea if it will work, they think it won't. It fits the author's and their publications conservative, small-government beliefs; I can't speak to the quality of the paper. Anyway, my comment was in response to disdain for experts in favor of parents. That sort of anti-intellectual mindset can hit the road. [0] https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/134/4/1793/5492274 https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/134/4/1793/5492274
makomk 7y ago
The UK's pound store chain is just mediocre for food - small selection, and what they do sell is typically the same price as the supermarkets these days at best, often because the supermarkts noticed where they were worse and discounted their items. (They do cheap pre-packaged sandwiches though.) I don't think you could really do a full food shop there. For other household items they're usually quite good value compared to everywhere else though.
redis_mlc 7y ago
> I don't know how they operate in the US Well I do, and everything you said is false in the USA. They carry high-end family-sized canned soup for $1, which I often buy. They carry pasta ingredients for $1, which I buy if I'm in the mood to cook it. I haven't seen vegetables. AMA.

Danieru 7y ago

Indeed! Not only are they more expensive per unit, but they go even further by only offering the higher margin food in the first place. Dollar Stores are often predatory for food. Regular grocery stores already operate on thin margins. Dollar stores are preying on those trying to save money by being closer and easier to get to. All while deceiving poor people on the true cost of their food. All things equal Dollar Stores would be fine, but they pull the oxygen out of the market for proper low margin grocery stores.

JamesBarney 7y ago

I really think banning poor individuals from choosing to shop at a dollar store because you assume you know better is elitism.

vinay427 7y ago
I might agree with this perspective if third-parties weren't involved, but unfortunately when dependents, often children, are added into the mix I think there is some justification for regulating away options that (at least objectively) can be harmful.
- useragent86 7y ago
  Isn't it elitist to presume that you know how children should be raised better than their parents do?
  - extra88 7y ago
    If it’s elitist to listen to people who have researched a subject (nutritionists, public health experts, etc.) rather than every person who has produced offspring, so be it.
    - useragent86 7y ago
      It's not elitist to listen to them. It is elitist to force others to do so.
    - JamesBarney 7y ago
      Experts have no idea if banning dollar stores will improve the diet of people in the neighborhood, no idea if even if it improves diet that will lead to measureable health outcomes. And even if it leads to measurable effects that those effects are large enough to be worth the inconvenience of not being able to go to a dollar store. Researchers don't know if even one of those causal links is real, much less all of them.
      - extra88 7y ago
        What is the basis for your claim that "experts" have no idea if banning will work? The posted article was written to counter stories about efforts to limit dollar stores and encourage full-service grocery stores. The story's tool is a paper [0] by economists who analyzed data and found that access to full-service grocery stores does not make a meaningful difference. So those experts (economists) think they do any have idea if it will work, they think it won't. It fits the author's and their publications conservative, small-government beliefs; I can't speak to the quality of the paper. Anyway, my comment was in response to disdain for experts in favor of parents. That sort of anti-intellectual mindset can hit the road. [0] https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/134/4/1793/5492274 https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/134/4/1793/5492274

makomk 7y ago

The UK's pound store chain is just mediocre for food - small selection, and what they do sell is typically the same price as the supermarkets these days at best, often because the supermarkts noticed where they were worse and discounted their items. (They do cheap pre-packaged sandwiches though.) I don't think you could really do a full food shop there. For other household items they're usually quite good value compared to everywhere else though.

redis_mlc 7y ago

> I don't know how they operate in the US Well I do, and everything you said is false in the USA. They carry high-end family-sized canned soup for $1, which I often buy. They carry pasta ingredients for $1, which I buy if I'm in the mood to cook it. I haven't seen vegetables. AMA.