3 ms·

Walmart also has a hedge in that IIRC its initial expansion was in rural areas neglected by most department store/big box chains. If anything, the dollar store

Walmart also has a hedge in that IIRC its initial expansion was in rural areas neglected by most department store/big box chains. If anything, the dollar stores represent more of a threat to Walmart.

bombcar 3y ago
The dollar stores around here pose no threat, except maybe in the area of helium balloons. The jump to being a five dollar store that the other one did is doomed to failure.
- thebears5454 3y ago
  Dollar stores are certainly stealing a lot of Walmarts lunch in rural illinois and Iowa. Why would you go 35min to Walmart if you just need 10 things when there's a dollar store 10 min away that's almost the same price as Walmart and much better shopping experience.
  - jstarfish 3y ago
    Yeah, and they're one of the reasons the poor stay poor. Dollar stores are a terrible value. Walmart made a name for itself with its "rollback" program, where products would appear cheaper than competitors' because the SKU contained one less ounce/gram/unit. Dollar stores takes Walmart's own game to extremes; you buy a quart of watered-down bleach for $2, where buying an entire gallon (4x the volume) of the real thing would cost you $3 at Walmart. Or, $20 for a 14-pack of Monster drinks at Walmart is a terrible deal when they're "just" $3 (each) at the gas station! You see the same thing with people buying individual packs of cigarettes instead of an entire carton. The math works against them. They don't understand it.
    - bobthepanda 3y ago
      Sometimes it’s not about understanding. There was a analysis, recently, that amongst users of the New York subway, the most common fare type amongst the poor was the pay per ride card. Even though it had the highest per-ride cost, it turns out that poor people living paycheck to paycheck simply cannot stump up the upfront cash to pay for the better deal. (As a result the new fare system combines both with automatic caps on pay as you go fares.)
    - thebears5454 3y ago
      You're missing the entire point of my comment.
- Spooky23 3y ago
  Dollar General is kicking WalMart in the teeth pretty good.
  - bombcar 3y ago
    Maybe somewhere but around here I was generally disappointed with the prices at the DG. I could see how more locations could help.

Walmart also has a hedge in that IIRC its initial expansion was in rural areas neglected by most department store/big box chains. If anything, the dollar stores represent more of a threat to Walmart.

bombcar 3y ago

The dollar stores around here pose no threat, except maybe in the area of helium balloons. The jump to being a five dollar store that the other one did is doomed to failure.

thebears5454 3y ago
Dollar stores are certainly stealing a lot of Walmarts lunch in rural illinois and Iowa. Why would you go 35min to Walmart if you just need 10 things when there's a dollar store 10 min away that's almost the same price as Walmart and much better shopping experience.
- jstarfish 3y ago
  Yeah, and they're one of the reasons the poor stay poor. Dollar stores are a terrible value. Walmart made a name for itself with its "rollback" program, where products would appear cheaper than competitors' because the SKU contained one less ounce/gram/unit. Dollar stores takes Walmart's own game to extremes; you buy a quart of watered-down bleach for $2, where buying an entire gallon (4x the volume) of the real thing would cost you $3 at Walmart. Or, $20 for a 14-pack of Monster drinks at Walmart is a terrible deal when they're "just" $3 (each) at the gas station! You see the same thing with people buying individual packs of cigarettes instead of an entire carton. The math works against them. They don't understand it.
  - bobthepanda 3y ago
    Sometimes it’s not about understanding. There was a analysis, recently, that amongst users of the New York subway, the most common fare type amongst the poor was the pay per ride card. Even though it had the highest per-ride cost, it turns out that poor people living paycheck to paycheck simply cannot stump up the upfront cash to pay for the better deal. (As a result the new fare system combines both with automatic caps on pay as you go fares.)
  - thebears5454 3y ago
    You're missing the entire point of my comment.
Spooky23 3y ago
Dollar General is kicking WalMart in the teeth pretty good.
- bombcar 3y ago
  Maybe somewhere but around here I was generally disappointed with the prices at the DG. I could see how more locations could help.