Which Dollar Store Is Best?
- Dollar stores had a big year in 2018.
- Dollar Tree currently has 14,000 locations, with plans to open hundreds more by the end of 2018. Comparable sales were up 2.3% at Dollar Tree in the third quarter.
- Dollar General currently has about 15,000 locations, with plans to open 975 more in 2019. Comparable sales were up 2.8% at Dollar General in the third quarter.
- While not a traditional dollar store in that its products are priced up to $5, Five Below opened 53 stores in the third quarter, bringing its store total to 745. Five Below's comparable sales grew by 4.8% in the quarter.
- We shopped at all three dollar stores this year and found that one of them offered a much better experience than the other two.
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Dollar stores have been growing like crazy recently, with Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Five Below all opening tons of new stores in 2018. From 2010 to 2015, dollar-store sales grew from $30.4 billion to $45.3 billion in the United States.
Dollar Tree, which recently acquired the Family Dollar chain, currently has around 14,000 locations. In the third quarter of 2018, Dollar Tree reported comparable sales were up 2.3%. Dollar Tree said that in 2019, it plans to open 350 more namesake locations, 200 new Family Dollar locations, and rebrand 200 Family Dollar locations as Dollar Tree stores.
Dollar General currently has around 15,000 locations. It is on track to open 900 new stores in 2018. During a call with investors on Tuesday, the company said it plans to open 975 more stores in 2019.
While not a traditional dollar store in that its products are priced up to $5, Five Below announced its own plans to grow earlier this year. In the third quarter of 2018, Five Below reported comparable sales grew by 4.8%. It opened 53 new stores this quarter, bringing its store count to 745.
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One of those stores that opened was a flagship location on New York's Fifth Avenue, one of the most expensive shopping destinations in the US.
We compared what it's like to shop at the three rapidly growing stores and found that one offered a far better experience. Here's the verdict:
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