Dollar store
A
dollar store is a store that sells inexpensive items for one
dollar or less each. A popular concept throughout the world, the stores usually sell everything from
cleaning supplies to children's
toys to food. In the United States, most, if not all, of these stores contain almost exclusively merchandise that is imported from overseas. There are many dollar stores that sell nothing but goods made in China.
Often the term "dollar store", used by the store, can be misleading. Some stores with the word "dollar" in the name, and even some claiming to be "dollar stores", have items that technically cost more (or less) than a dollar. The problem with the name is also compounded by sales taxes, which leads to taxable items costing the customer more than a dollar.
Separate from "everything costs $1 (or less)" stores, there are also stores featuring the word "Dollar" in their names, where the prices are in easy multiples of a dollar or 50 cents (for example, $2.50, $2 etc).
This concept is not new, and likely originated with the
five and ten or
five and dime, a store where everything cost either five or ten cents. The originator of the concept may be
Woolworths, which began in
1878 in
Utica,
New York. Other five and tens that existed in the USA included
W.T. Grant,
J.J. Newberry's,
McCrory's,
Kresge,
McClellan's, and
Ben Franklin Stores. Inflation eventually dictated that the stores were no longer able to sell any items for five or ten cents, and were then referred to as
variety stores.
The most notable examples are the large retail chains
Dollar Tree,
Dollar General, and
Family Dollar.
*cleaning supplies
(sponges, sprays, scrubbers, dustpans, bleach, cloths)*small tools
(screwdrivers, wrenches, flashlights, locks, rope)*tape
(duct tape, packing tape, scotch tape, electrical tape)*personal supplies
(combs, brushes, barettes, hair pulls, shampoo, soap, razor to shave, deodorant)*kitchen supplies
(utensils, spatulas, peelers, dishes, glasses, potholders)*organizational supplies
(crates, dish drainers, hangers, suction cups)*small office supplies
(pens, pencils, paper, markers, thumbtacks, paperclips, rubber)*decorations
(Christmas ornaments, Halloween treats, Easter eggs)*home supplies
(night lights, light bulbs, extension cords, candles)*electronics supplies
(phone cords, TV cables, audio, video, power and computer adapters, splitters, usb memories)*food
(canned vegetables, cookies, candy, ramen noodles, soft drinks, water)*gardening supplies
(small pots, seeds, decorations, tools, drippers, hoses)*
crafts
(ribbons, pom-poms, tape, scissors, paints, brushes, clips)*home decor novelties
(picture frames, candle holders, paperweights)*small novelty toys
(suction darts, rubber balls, plastic cars, booklets)*pet supplies
(chew toys, collars, leashes, bowls, rawhide)*outdated computer software.
*old movies and DVDs
*
out of print books.
Some items sold at a dollar store would be a dollar or less anyway, whereas other items are a substantially better deal. There are four main reasons a dollar store is able to sell merchandise at such a low price:
* The product is a
generic or "knock-off", often specially manufactured for such stores.
* The product was manufactured cheaply for a
foreign market but was then imported by an unauthorized distributor (
grey market goods).
* The product is purchased from another retail store or distributor as
overstock,
closeout merchandise, or seasonal merchandise at the end of the season.
Some stores carry mostly new merchandise, some mostly
closeout merchandise bought from other stores below regular wholesale cost. Other variations on the dollar store include the 99¢ store, and at least one $1.25 store. While they may each set a different amount, the stores' concept depends on having a single
retail price point for all merchandise, regardless of
wholesale cost.
Dollar stores are often
franchises. Dollar stores are the modern incarnation of "5 and 10" or "
five and dime" stores where all merchandise was ten
cents or less.[
1]
Depending upon the size, some dollar stores may have a frozen food and drink section, and also one with fruits and vegetables. The
Deal$ store chain in the U.S. is one such example.
*
Canada:
Buck or Two (163+),
Dollarama (300+),
Everything For a Dollar Store,
Great Canadian Dollar Store (100+)
*
Mexico:
Waldo's: Todo Un Precio*
United States:
Deal$,
Dollar General Store,
The Dollar Market,
Dollar Tree,
Family Dollar Stores,
Greenbacks,
99 Cents Only StoreThis phenomenon also occurs in Europe. In Britain they are called pound shops. One popular chain is called either
Poundland[
2] or
Euroland, depending on whether in Britain or the
Eurozone. It is quite common to find products originally intended for sale in other markets, despite differences such as packaging written in foreign languages. For example, one may find Pepsi from
Poland or the
Czech Republic on sale in the
UK. (See also
Grey market).
The
Hema (
Hollandse Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij - Dutch Standard Pricing company) was originally a '
guilder' store, everything costing one
gulden.
In
Norway there is
Tier´n, which is a colloquialism for ten
kroner (crowns), about $1.40.
In
Sweden there is
Bubbeltian, called by some
Tian, which is a colloquialism for ten
kronor (crowns), about $1.25. Another chain that has been spreading in Sweden during the last seven years is
Dollarstore[
3], a chain where everything costs either 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 or 100
skr, which is supposed to roughly equal one, two, three, four, five or ten dollars. Despite the obvious similarity in name, it paradoxically does not seem to have any official connection with its American namesake, Dollarstore Corporation, and is limited solely to Sweden. Having a wider price range, these stores naturally also has a wider range of products than Bubbeltian, meaning more or less all of the aforementioned products excluding books and computer software. While it has only eleven stores yetsofar and has yet to reach any further south down the country than the town of
Ludvika in the country's geographic middle, it is still one of the fastest growing low price chains in the country, after
Netto and
Lidl.
In
Spain there are
Todo a 100 shops ("everything for 100
pesetas (0.60 €)"), although due to the introduction of the euro and inflation, most products cost a multiple of 0.60 or 1 euro. Most of these shops maintain their name in
pesetas, and most of them have been renamed as
Casi todo a 100 ("almost everything for 100 [pesetas]") or
Todo a 100, 300, 500 y más ("everything for 100, 300, 500 or more").
In
Romania there are
38 000 lei shops. 38 000 ROL equals 3.80 RON (new Romania currency) and is the equivalent of about 1.20 euros. Excepting food, they sell about everything that can be squeezed at this price. Some stores also sell products at multiples of 3.80 lei.
This type of retail is also observable in
Japan. It is commonly referred to as "
100-yen shop" (US dollar being 100 to 150
yen).
The stores are said to be proliferating across Japan since around 2001. This is considered by some an effect of decade long recession of Japanese economy.
For a long time, 100-yen shops existed not as stores in brick-and-mortar building, but as vendors under temporary, foldable tents. They were (and still are) typically found near the entrance areas of supermarkets.
In Australia, these stores often sell aforementioned products for two dollars -- indeed, one store is named the "Two Dollar Shop", the other notable shop is named "The Reject Shop". Often, stores similar to these operate and are labeled independently. They are found normally in shopping malls, but also found in other areas streetside.
These stores are found all over the Middle East, however the most 'popular' ones are found in the city of
Dubai. Advertised extensively on Arabic and Persian satellite TV stations across the world, these stores have gained new ground in attracting tourists from other Middle Eastern nations to the
United Arab Emirates.
Although there is no official name for these stores in Arabic, they are generally called the "kul'lo shayy'in AAshara dirham" stores ("everything ten dirhams"). Ten dirhams would be about USD $3.
The popular ones in Dubai are
Arz Al-Hadaya ("Gift Land"),
Al-Kabayl Discount Center,
Day to Day, and
Gift Village.
*
100-yen shop*
retail*
marketing*
list of marketing topics*
distribution
