Not to mention the cost of labor! When I walk into dollar tree, I'm hard pressed to find more than 3 employees for the entire store. Walmart has quite a bit more employees per square foot!
Something it’s important to remember is that poor people need to spend their paycheck right away. They do not have the luxury of investing, saving, or even buying in bulk sometimes. Dollar Tree food products may not actually be a savings per pound, but it’s usually the food that’s available today, when people need it.
In 1994 I graduated high school and shortly after in July, my parents threw me out on my 18th birthday. I landscaped for my full time job at $5 per hour and after taxes I had $180 per week to spend on food, gas, car insurance, rent, and Keystone Light beer. I was poor AF! Man I wish this place existed for me back then.
Shopping at Dollar Tree was always a boon when I was at my lowest. Not only could I feed myself for next to nothing but the cashiers were always so lovely because at the end of it you're shopping at Dollar Tree for pasta and milk and processed cheese and they know how bad you're doing. It was a good lesson in community.
the best thing to get at dollar tree is definitely greeting cards!! They can get expensive at the regular store ($2-10) but you get 2 for $1.25 at dollar tree. There is also a great selection
Yup, my grandparents taught me this. Even though greeting cards are a racket and quickly going out of fashion, you CANNOT beat the dollar stores if you're going to get them.
Worked at dollar tree for around 10 months getting 10$ and hour. It was the worst job I've ever had the displeasure of working. From customers screaming at you for things you can't control, to people bringing in 4-8 kids and letting them destroy the store... it's the worst. I mean it's just me and the manager on shift, we have to make sure the whole store looks clean and good by the time we close but it's nearly impossible because I'm always swamped at the register and he was always busy doing "go backs" (go backs are items that people just...put on the register or decide they don't want so we have to put back) so when some mom brings in her kids and they break a bunch of stuff, we can't do much to clean it cause we're already stretched thin. And don't get me started on people who get mad cause we don't do returns. Like no ma'am, for the 8th time, we do exchanges, not returns... God I hated working there, the customer base is horrible, so rude and disrespectful and it didn't help that we closed super late, 10pm, every other dollar tree around us closed at 8:30 or 9 but we were the most popular store in the region (from what I remember, average sales would be about 6-7k a day) so we kept our doors open longer. Anyway, I feel sorry for any poor unfortunate souls who work there now.
I worked at a dollar tree for just 10 days for an overnight project cause they were exapnding the store. I was definitely being underpaid but I was desperate for money so I took it. Tbh some of my coworkers had more knowledge on how to do things than the manager on site because a few times I asked her a question and she seemed almost as lost as me. After a few times, I just went to the few coworkers who I knew would give me a good answer 😂
I work there now and have for 2 years. I love our store and location and my manager is competent. But I've definitely heard some horror stories about other locations in our district. And yeah the customers can be just ugh...
I used to work at a Dollar Tree as a manager. Never again. I understand it’s good for low income households but they overworked us to the point where I had white hairs and heart problems (because of my caffeine dependency trying to keep up.) Terrible company.
Looking back thinking about my childhood, I'm grateful for Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. Definitely came in handy for common supplies and foods when you needed it the most. Even though I didn't necessarily grow up "poor" or "low-income", being able to get a bunch of stuff off of a single $10 or $20 bill was such a great feeling. Thats something Walmarts and Targets can never provide as everything is continuously getting more and more expensive.
@@postplays Most corporations can fire you for any reason they can imagine, even if its just to shut you up. Sure, you could file a wrongful termination suit, but they'll likely bury you into the ground with legal fees.
@@postplays Haha, if only it worked that way. Tell that to the millions who got laid off during Covid. Get real, corporations don't deserve your labor in the slightest. People were more productive working outside of the office, but bosses are so worried about slackers they want to force everyone back into the office hellscape. There was once a time in American history, in the years of Carnegie and monopolies, where it was the dream to stop working. Yes, having a job (or trade) and living off of wages was frowned upon. Sad to see that so many people are duped into believing they don't deserve the same.
I remember clearly this event like yesterday. In 2016, I bought a $25 scientific calculator from our university book store. I went to the lab telling my classmate how expensive things are. Then the next day, he brought not one but 2 calculators identical to the one I purchased the day before, with packages showing that they were 4 dollars each. To this day, I have no idea how they got the calculators so cheap.
I personally really love both Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. Being somebody who grew up very poor with the water and lights being shut off for weeks on end, and finally slowly working my way up out of that position and into a more middle class position. Growing up they provided everything my family needed. Really cheap meals that just took creativity to actually piece something together that surprised others that it came from a dollar store. Cleaning supplies, drinks, random household items/necessities. All for no more than 10 bucks each?! Sure some of the items you get from those stores are nowhere near the best quality, there's no argument there. But It did well enough to get me through the roughest patch of my life. So big ups for that
honestly i love them. i live in a pretty bad situation and im only in highschool but i go there for essentials like cleaning, clothes, household stuff etc. i’m lucky enough to be able to afford food from places like aldi/trader joes where it’s not too pricey but dollar tree has came in clutch so many times
Fun fact: I'm not sure if they still do it but at one point, dollar tree tried charging their employees $10 for their W2 tax forms, y'know the thing they legally aren't allowed to charge you for.
@@payne3133 it’s not bootlicking that what low iq people say, it’s dumb to think that a Fortune 500 company with fleets of lawyers would try and do something so blatantly illegal and easy to be caught doing, sometimes it’s good to use critical thought before suckling on a yt comment
I remember in my teens I was basically legally homeless, as my dad just filed bankruptcy and we didn't have a consistent place to stay. For a few months we eventually stayed at a small house in the middle of nowhere next to a bunch of farm land. Literally the only grocery store within a 5 mile walking distance were dollar trees, despite walking past miles of farm land to even get to one.
Dollar Tree usually has very little value if you look below the surface. Yeah, you may be able to get a package of “x” for $1 when a similar package of “x” sells for $2 at Walmart, but when you examine the per unit or per ounce, then it’s often cheaper to shop at Walmart for the same brand or the “great value” brand.
Exactly. The size of their consumables is exploitative. Super small for a buck, do the math, cheaper at a real store to get the same amount. We are throwing an Egg hunt for my building. Let’s just say the eggs came from dollar tree. The candy, did not. Mess around and spend more than $20 on small amounts of low quality candy. Nope.
A lot of people shopping at Dollar tree can't afford to spend $2 when the $1 thing is all they can afford for the week. Then there's also people who only need a few items that are usually sold in larger packages. If you're just going to have a few people over and don't use paper plates often, why buy a 100 pack for a $5 when you can just buy a 10 pack for $1. Speaking of which, event organizers and small business owners are some of our biggest customers. Balloons, party supplies, real plates, real cups, etc. are generally cheaper at Dollar Tree, since they're poorly made. And I can't tell you how many times I recognized DT party merch when watching the news or in the background of some video. Then there's pet supplies/children toys. Some people don't want to get big bags of treats and the small bags are like $5 at pet stores, so they get them from us. As for toys, a lot of people don't want to bother training their dog/cat to treat their toys carefully so they just buy some for a dollar. Same with children, plus parents like to use Dollar Trees as daycares and then reward their childrens' poor behavior by buying them a toy or candy. Medication is very strictly controlled by the FDA and if you're just treating a cold or a headache, some people don't want to spend $10 on brand name medicine that are made of the same ingredients as the $1 stuff. I could go on. Dollar Tree is classified as a convenience store for a reason. You're not paying for value, you're paying to not have to go to 8 different stores to get the best deals and not needing to go to a big box store to get more than you need or can afford.
@@ANullAssault I think you are missing their point. Often, too often, the cheap DT offering is actually more expensive for less once you look at unit price. Sure, there are all those reasons you listed for why it can be good. But being too broke isn’t one of them. That’s the scam of it. It’s always more expensive to be poor.
@@MoonFairy929 as a manager of one for 5 years, I can assure you being too broke is definitely one of them. Homeless people, people with disabilities, on welfare, etc. I've had people break down crying because their card couldn't afford $5 of merchandise.
As someone in a small town, the only two stores we really have are family dollar and dollar general. So we are pretty much forced to shop there or go to the next town over.
Dollar stores are good places to pick up a few things you need quickly when the quality doesn't really matter. Maybe you just need some paper plates, napkins and plastic forks because you're serving cake at an office birthday party later today. You could go to the supermarket, but you just went two days ago and it would take longer just to park there than it would take to run into a place like Dollar Tree.
The quality of products is often better than grocery stores; Walmart has nicer stuff for often cheaper prices by the oz but there’s a lot more floor to walk & shop.
Dollar Tree has plenty of brand name items. I use Crest 3D white toothpaste, they have it, I buy shower liners from Dollar Tree since they have to be replaced every month or so, snacks along with countless other odds and ends.
If you’ve noticed, the trend in brick and mortar retail stores over the past 30-40 years is that the retailers that catered to the middle class like JC Penney, Montgomery Ward, Sears, etc. are either long gone or soon to be gone. Dollar stores are thriving catering to the poor customers as are the higher end retailers that cater to high income customers. Kind of tells you where we’ve been heading under capitalism for quite some time.
@@anonymousanonymous4690 yes they have, statistically speaking the middle class has actually grown in recent times, also yes Amazon is actually a larger company and outperforms both Walmart and JCPenney so yes clearly that is where the middle class has went and I’m one of them
Middle class is growing recent years and Amazon is the reason for the death of brick and mortar stores. Why leave your house when you can spend bout half the money and get it at your door step the next day
@@frozen9065 also why spend 2-3x as much just to "support" a local business of resellers? people forget that the reason walmart drove those "mom and pop stores" out of business, is cause they were selling the same shit as walmart, just for much more expensive because they are buying at retail price from retail stores, and simply doubling or tripling the price.
I find Amerian shopping habits quite intriguing. It makes me reflect on what types of shops are available here in europe and why I choose the outlets I'm choosing.
In high-school we always went to dollar tree to get snacks, drinks or trinkets. That treasure hunt experience was really quite fun. We'd always go back to class with a new inflatable shark or something just because "it was only $1"
I think it's company policy to always have only one person working the register, even though they have like 5 or 6 checkout stands... only when the line gets ridiculously long like into the aisle is when they'll get two, but still very rare
It’s like that everywhere. They want to save as much payroll money as possible. It’s pure greed nothing else. I thank the universe every day that I’m no longer a cashier.
im thankful for the dollar tree for supplying my family with basic things like dish soap sponges cleaner etc i also used a dollar tree pocket knife as my edc knife and it worked and it still works tho i dont carry it anymore im still thankful to have the dollar tree around i even bought food there before its helped alot
I’m a store manager for Dollar Tree. I would have a heart attack if my store looked as bad as the one you showed. I am lucky as I have a good crew and my store is in a very nice area…
It's amazing the difference between Dollar Trees in different income areas. There's a much richer area next to my workplace and the DT there is so much nicer. I've yet to find a nice Family Dollar in my state, though.
Imagine collecting your paycheck when your shop looks like a garbage dump, how can you live with such mediocrity and low esteem? Do people not take pride in their work, even if it’s humble?
@@enlyr4069 I work at a DT and our store looks like a mess because no one ever recovers, the Store manager is an idiot, and the stocking team does nearly all the hard work, but they get a very small amount of hours. Stocking hours are so bad that you'd be lucky to get 3 days of work in a week. You can only do so much when management and corporate are so incompetent.
Being in the army, I LOVE dollar stores. It allows me to save money on basic things such as cleaning products, toilet paper, toothpaste and more. Why go anywhere else when all I have to do is spend $1? It's not great for other things (imo), but for basic items it's unmatched
@@AndriaaLeoLove Proverbs 11:2 “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” Proverbs 16:5 “The LORD detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.” Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”
When I was very very poor it was nice being able to estimate my total based on the number of items in my basket. Sometimes the same thing was very slightly cheaper at Walmart, but it was much easier to get a variety of things for $20 than at Walmart Excellent point about the treasure hunt at dollar tree! Thats very true!
I went there earlier hoping to "save" on certain household items but they kind of trick you. Say there's a certain item at Walmart that's $3-$4 per package. If you go to Dollar Tree you'll see a $1 package of that product but when you factor in the smaller volume you realize you'd need to buy 3 or 4 anyway to get what you'd already get at Walmart for that price.
Nah, your just looking at it wrong. You grab it if you need it quick but probably not a lot at that moment and just need enough to do what you gotta do and maybe even more since the amount you get is pretty decent tbh. You know your not getting as much but it’s still enough to get you by.
Well some people really wouldn't need that $3 to begin with. If I have $50 to budget for the week and I need some bleach for a single stained clothing, its better to buy just buy at dollar tree and get 2 extra meat options rather than buying a bigboy bleach that I would really only need to use once.
Then buy that idem at Walmart. If you are an older single person on a fixed income DT gets the job done. I am not doing dishes for a family of 5 now. 1 small bottle of Ajax works just fine.
@@jimroscovius you do realize the economy was fucked through the entire planet as a consequence of a globalized economy and an unpredictable world event and can’t be magically fixed by the president of one country right
I didn’t realize how prevalent Dollar Tree actually was …also you get what you pay for. If dollar tree wasn’t serving people to an extent, then they wouldn’t be in business so the value must be there to a degree
There are a shit ton of poor people in America. Murica is small islands of extreme wealth surrounded by oceans of poverty. Dolla dolla store is just another parasite feeding on the desperation of the poors.
It used to be valuable to people in need. Then in 2016 rich people "discovered bargain shopping", and they really ruined the supply and demand in Dollar stores. The CEO caught on, and in 2019 renewed the contract to include: a price increase, brand names, buying out Dollar General and Family Dollar, and closing stores in low income neighborhoods in favor of high income neighborhoods. Its fucked. The issue is the more we ignore it the more it will happen to various franchises. A lot of people don't care now because they can afford the price increase. But thay day will come when we all screwed
While the 25 cent price bump came at a bad time of OTHER price increases...frankly I had been surprised they had managed to hold at $1.00 for literally decades (though some products did get smaller). They were a godsend when I was broke, saving me sometimes $2 to 3 on an item. And, VERY surprisingly, the quality of the products was good..like a laundry detergent, which can be tricky, even with name brands. And I'd still have money for 2 or 3 less neccessary, frivolous things as a treat. So it was fun, too. And yes...I did notice the employees were surprisingly nice. I also, accidentally left a 12 pack of toilet paper, ( which is $$) bought at another store...and they saved it for a week, till I could get back. So yeah, I love DOLLAR TREE.
Why would people be against Dollar Trees popping up in their area? As someone that came from an incredibly poor family, Dollar Tree was a MASSIVE help for us. Was the quality of the food and other stuff good? Not really, but when you're dirt poor you take what you can get. Plus there are some products sold there that are actually pretty decent, and you can find more if you're willing to experiment with some of the food there
Dollar tree forces out a lot of other stores that otherwise exist, and they profit from food deserts. Where I used to live (very poor rural area in wny) we had a neighborhood grocery store that had actual produce and healthier options. And then dollar tree opened. Because you could one stop shop there, and they were able to operate at a loss until the grocery closed, they eliminated the only healthy food option for an hours drive in any direction. There is a reason your zip code correlates to lifespan. Food deserts kill.
As a worker of an H2 (it means both dollar tree and family dollar) store, I can say that the company gets these big margines by paying next to nothing. While it grows fast, it doesn't put anything back into it's stores beyond product. It can be incredibly frustrating to try to get your DM to help with an issue that cannot be resolved at the store level, and next to impossible if a new store is being opened in your district, there's one every 3 or 4 months. It'll be profitable, but the workers tend to be weighed down with unreasonable amounts of work. Cleaning a 9,000 sq foot store takes time, but they'll alot 2 work hours for it.
Our front door has been broken for 2 years and every repair man says "this is a bandaid and will only last a few weeks I'll email them to replace it" but it's still broken
Whoever you are, I enjoy your insightful analysis in all your videos! Wish your videos were available like 10 years ago when I was studying MBA in the US. As a poor student, dollar tree used to be my go-to-place for consumption product. I remember. a small bath carpet cost about $16 in Target but only $5 in dollar tree. Then when I started working after graduation, I loved visiting Trader Joes. All those grocery stores and supermarket analysis reminds me of those time. Thank you so much for making those videos! Already subscribed, and I'll keep supporting you!
As a career army man now retired on just my government benefits these discount outlets are essential and awesome. Not a big "dollar store" guy really but man, I love, LOVE those Family Dollar stores though. I get basically everything there. My loyalty to the family dollar store chain is absolute!
Thanks, DT, we have clean and organized stores in North Texas and the employees are always friendly and can move the traffic swiftly. I am impressed and a happy customer. Please keep it affordable. Many thanks 🙏
High quality in depth analysis delivered in a comsince manner, a rarity on UA-cam. Your content isn't getting anywhere near the level of attention it deserves, keep it up!
Dude I laughed so hard when you tried to say it's a treasure hunt to go through a store that is fucked up . That's such an American thing or maybe southern. I only know of this from my trips to Florida. No way should you try to say a dirty and unattended store is a good one .
My bf and I are recent retirees who live in a somewhat affluent town in Connecticut. We have a dollar tree next door to our Big Y, and when we were working and had more disposable income we never went to Dollar Tree. Now, we create a shopping list every week, and our first stop is Dollar Tree. We're saving a lot of money! You do need to be careful because not everything is a deal. You need to pay attention to quantities, etc.The shelves are always fully stocked, we can get things you don't see anywhere else, and the employees have always been friendly and helpful.
I have always enjoyed Dollar Tree more than FD. The FD in my town is pretty dated, cramped, and unappealing. Heck the Dollar Tree near me is a go to place because a movie theater is right beside it. Smuggling candy or popcorn was a mandatory thing lol.
When I was growing up I always had fond memories of going to Aldi, Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, and Dollar General. My favorite when I was much younger was the dollar tree. You could find such neat things at Aldi and Dollar Tree, and you could afford to buy quite a bit. When I was younger money was tight, and you really learned the value of a dollar. Later money was not nearly as tight, but I still loved Dollar Tree and Aldi. Today my favorite store is Aldi for my food, and Dollar Tree for my stuff. I work long hours, and really enjoy the small foot print and affordability of these kind of stores. You can be in and out of a Dollar General or Dollar Tree in 15 minutes. You really can't do that with a Walmart or Kroger.
Also, I remember distinctively the one year where Valentine's Day had the whole store ceiling covered from front to back with heart balloons and dangling strings to where it blotted out all lights and looked like something out of a discount Junji Ito nightmare, it was surreal
At Walgreens, chips and candy cost four to six dollars. At Dollar Tree, chips and candy are one to one-twentyfive. I bought a boat load of candy last month for Halloween and the total price was seven-teen dollars. I thought I would have to pay thirty dollars for candy but it was low costing. Dollar Tree is the store you can trust.
I just subbed. Gonna binge watch. The layout of your videos, approach, and topics are great. I definitely can remember what I learned. I hope you don’t try to change to what everyone else is doing as you grow. The directness is perfect. One thing though. You gotta slow down talking just a little bit, hearing a tripped up word kinda detracts from the experience. Also the sharp edits in your voice over do the same thing. Other than that, I can’t wait to see this channel blow up from that one vid that catches popularity Already hooked for more content.
I think it would also be interesting to explore the Canadian counterpart: Dollarama. They not only open a lot of stores in poorer areas but also in very rich areas as well, which I think is pretty interesting. They know that even the rich sometimes just want some $1 items as well and they are everywhere in Eastern Canada.
For some reason, Dollar Tree makeup works the best for my mother. It seems that Dollar Tree is not carrying the specific brand as much but each time we go to one we always walk out with something even if it isn't her makeup.
2:08 - 2:56 I find this characterization problematic. It's not their fault that there are poor people in car-dependant suburban wastelands that have no other option than to shop at Dollar Tree. Rather the chain is providing a valuable service without which folks would have to travel long distances say, by bus to reach a large store. The countys opposing the move come off as not wanting to be a place accessible to poor people by allowing Dollar Tree to open there. I sorta understand that they derive the majority of their revenue from property taxes, and having peasants in their suburb will drive down property values, but their dire financial straits is a consequence of being a suburban wasteland, which requires a lot more infrastructure for lower productivity. Check out Charles Marohn's 'Strong Towns' for more on this issue.
I just observed a lady walk into dollar tree with a duffle bag... Fill it up with items... Then she walked right out. She didn't appear to be in desperate need or on drugs or homeless at all. Appeared to be clean and normal. Had a soccer mom van parked outside... ....the cashier just watched her and called the cops. It was so so weird. Never thought I'd see someone steal from there..
@@linusmlgtips2123 Probably easier to stay under that $100 threshold for a simple Class C Misdemeanor charge of 'Petty Theft' than at a Whole Foods lol.
My bestie worked at one in Oregon for a few years and I swear every single week, she was the only one there and practically deep cleaned the store early on and she was covering everyone else's shifts and redid the entire balloon station to immaculate perfection and thwarted several robbery attempts in the dead of night and she STILL wasn't considered for manager position.
What's interesting is that dollar tree/family dollar/dollar general isn't really a new concept. They are actually incredibly old. they are incredibly similar to the old local retail franchises like the one Sam Walton started out in "Ben Franklins". Five and dime or "nickel stores" started with woolworths in the 1879 Which were themselves run very similarly to any old variety shop since the beginning of commerce. Big box stores are just a new experiment in retail when you think about it.
Another thing is that Dollar tree doesn't make you feel poor. Most of them are nice and pleasant. Easy to get into. And always have something interesting. I NEVER seen a dollar tree that messy in the video. That's just bad management.
I'd be curious what the comparison of annual sales *per square foot* between family dollar/tree and target and Walmart. Then you'd really see how they stack up.
dollar tree's business model is an awesome antithesis of the buy bulk and waste consumerism of most stores. the only thing they should be canceled for is lack of self checkout, resulting in very long lines
Some of my favorite stuff to buy at dollar tree are cleaning supplies, toothbrushes, hair products, and makeup products. Their makeup is so cheap that i can experiment with different types of makeup and colors like eye shadow
We are middle class. My mom was always obsessed with dollar stores even going back 20-25 years ago. While my mom does still shop there a lot, we stock up at other places where we get better prices in bulk to lesson inflation. Not everything at dollar stores is good quality or a good deal. And people need to understand that. Sadly many Americans have no other choice. That's just the reality of this country.
its true. we were living next to a dollar tree for a while and we were going in for a few things consistently, especially for gift stuff like cards, balloons, bags, and tissue paper. yeah it would probly be a better deal paying a little more at walmart/target next door but at dollar tree we dont have to deal with THE LINES!!!! well pay more per unit if it means we dont have to deal with people and lines he really called oscar mayer hotdogs essentials lol someones got jokes
PREY UPON THE POOR??? What?!? Every time I have been in a financial slump the dollar store is my savior. I have nothing but gratitude for Dollar Tree. Family Dollar on the other hand can go suck an exhaust pipe. Over priced crap.
I agree that the predatory narrative is completely overblown by wealthy people who don't know what they're talking about. the only people dollar tree is predatory to is their employees. dollar tree is overwhelmingly less predatory for customers than eg. walmart. I've never had a price error issue in dollar tree, for example. I don't like the variable prices of family dollar, but I really wish dollar tree jumped to $2.5 or $3 $2 is a great price point that would let them bring back a lot of quality products, but many suppliers would find it difficult to rework their quantities. if they made the jump to $2.5 or $3 while maintaining the flat rate pricing, then they could easily bundle the existing products and bring back a lot of great stuff.
The quality of products sold at these stores improved significantly during the previous decade; 2 & a half decades ago the products were barely acceptable.
In my country we have similar stores, they called FixPrice. They sell general goods including food and that can i say is that goods is generally crappy and food is quite bad. You can safely buy some canned fish (not just any, select one) or pickles, but in general its bleeh.
What folks don't realize is that buying these products in those sizes actually ends up costing you much more in the long run if you are an habitual customer. Family Dollar opened up here across from a beat up trailer park as their primary grocery/odds and ends store. I go in there about twice a year out of curiousity. Sure, their stuff is cheap- but the sizes and quality of the stuff is basically disposable. I use Dollar Tree for gift bags and cards... paper centerpieces, plastic drop cloths, tea lights, etc. I had a big score there the other day with finding red glass bottles for my bottle tree. Ended up much cheaper than Amazon's comparables.
It’s really sad because there are so so so many amazing products at DT and because they are often not big box store brands, the products will often go to waste if they were not available to DT or Dollar General/Family Dollar. The only sad thing is, I feel like brands who know they will be launched in DT stores will often manufacture their products to be smaller+have more packaging. Buying in bulk at a regular supermarket if you have access to it sometimes is more cost effective. I like going in and seeing what they have for pantry staples, because the quality is often the same as a regular super market. Gnocchi is my favorite to buy, but sometimes you can find stellar deals on sugar. I found 2lb fair trade cane sugar for a $1.25. That’s like $0.63 for a lb. I think you pay more for the processed foods in the DT, but staple foods are often a good deal. Just make sure to double check on canned goods, because basics like tomato sauce is often cheaper at WALL·E world like 89 cents a can instead of $1.25
I wanted to say this content is very high quality, I hope you continue making it (There is a real audience for videos like this, ive only just now discovered your channel). Thank you
watching this as a European feels weird considering how many small privately owned stores there are literally everywhere. going down any street in any city will get you to a store within 3 minutes
for real tho, dollar stores in America are shockingly trash compared to Daiso in Korea and Japan. Those actually have useful stuff and decent snacks and not just a bunch of cheap, flimsy crap
The check out lady at my dollar store went to the first Woodstock. There is some really avant-garde design in the products. Pop Artist would have a field day at the Dollar Store.
In BC our dollar trees/ dollar stores are not $1 they're around $6 or more. They're cheaper than buying from the grocery store but the cost still adds up
We have similar retail oulet: 'Poundland' in the UK. However, they have now moved away from being "£1 everything" to adopting the conventional supermarket pricing.
In europe, quite obvious that shops would be smaller. When looking at the size of dollar tree, It was comparable to a regular sized supermarket here in the UK within a town. The size of walmart looked like a costco or even a shopping centre.
Didn’t start going to dollar tree until I went to college (which is ironic since I grew up about 15 minutes away from their corporate headquarters) but I fucking love it. It’s perfect for buying essentials, and also dumb stuff too.
Family Dollar only stays in business because they are placed in low income areas and are often the only or closest choice. The prices of Family Dollar are every bit as high as Wal Mart or other stores. A lot of times, the lower priced items also have less product in the packaging, deceiving you into thinking it’s a deal. I used to live near a shopping strip that had FD, 99 Cents Only and a La Michoacán in it, along with payday loan and other sketch places. FD never managed to disappoint and I’d only go there in an emergency. Those times are behind me though.
Here in UK we have Poundland and the concept is very similar. Only thing i noticed in the latest years is that you start getting self checkout and look a bit "smarter". To be honest what matters is the price and even if there was no recession i would shop there regardless because I don't think that buying the same product from 2 different stores make the quality of the product different.
A lot of times dollar tree is actually very expensive for what you get sometimes it’s better just to go to a regular store pay the regular price for a regular size package yet so much more for each dollar
I’ve been to so many dollar trees back in the day, and even the ones that are up and near me now, I’ll be completely honest, aren’t worth going to. I know that for a grand majority of people, they take advantage of the low income majority of people out there to the point that, the quality of what they sell just isn’t worth the time out of your day to buy. It’s the same with Walmart, but at least Walmart shows that they’re that way, and don’t get me wrong, dollar tree is that way too, but I never really liked either. Quality control is definitely important in my eyes, and if someone’s willing to do the barebones minimum to give off a store that is similar to dollar tree or worse, I wouldn’t be surprised by the amount of people dwindling as time goes on. Dollar tree is different however, and while I may not like it, and would rather go to Costco to get the same stuff, or similar stuff, I don’t see myself personally liking Dollar Tree anytime soon.
Dollar stores are pretty great especially for the younger children you can let them buy a couple of things for themselves without much worry about the cost.
Not to mention the cost of labor! When I walk into dollar tree, I'm hard pressed to find more than 3 employees for the entire store. Walmart has quite a bit more employees per square foot!
True, never expect help when shopping at dollar tree lol
Yet I'm never able to find a worker at Walmart when I need them : ^)
They pay daily at the dollar trees by my house
This is true. I work at DT and there isn’t normally more people than a manager, a cashier, and if you’re lucky, a stocker.
I wouldn’t say that 🤣 barely any workers at the Walmart’s near me
Something it’s important to remember is that poor people need to spend their paycheck right away. They do not have the luxury of investing, saving, or even buying in bulk sometimes. Dollar Tree food products may not actually be a savings per pound, but it’s usually the food that’s available today, when people need it.
Cost more to be poor as they say
Calling me poor, nigga?
In 1994 I graduated high school and shortly after in July, my parents threw me out on my 18th birthday. I landscaped for my full time job at $5 per hour and after taxes I had $180 per week to spend on food, gas, car insurance, rent, and Keystone Light beer. I was poor AF! Man I wish this place existed for me back then.
Everyone can save something. They just don't. Maybe some of them need to get rid of their new iPhone.
@@jimroscovius Are you homeless?
Shopping at Dollar Tree was always a boon when I was at my lowest. Not only could I feed myself for next to nothing but the cashiers were always so lovely because at the end of it you're shopping at Dollar Tree for pasta and milk and processed cheese and they know how bad you're doing. It was a good lesson in community.
They know their customers. You can walk in with $20 & leave with a shitload of stuff with some change left over
Prices have now jumped to $1.25 or $1.33 after taxes
@@PraveenSrJ01 im still not mad at it
This is really hearth warming
It's more like $1.25 to $2.50 and $3.25!
They're becoming a mixed priced store!
the best thing to get at dollar tree is definitely greeting cards!! They can get expensive at the regular store ($2-10) but you get 2 for $1.25 at dollar tree. There is also a great selection
Yup, my grandparents taught me this. Even though greeting cards are a racket and quickly going out of fashion, you CANNOT beat the dollar stores if you're going to get them.
Make cards yourself. That’s what I’ve always done. It’s nice to save a buck, but I mainly do it because it feels more personal and meaningful.
My go to spot
I remember getting my siblings birthday cards at Walmart and I put them back they were so expensive dollar tree came on handy
Worked at dollar tree for around 10 months getting 10$ and hour. It was the worst job I've ever had the displeasure of working. From customers screaming at you for things you can't control, to people bringing in 4-8 kids and letting them destroy the store... it's the worst.
I mean it's just me and the manager on shift, we have to make sure the whole store looks clean and good by the time we close but it's nearly impossible because I'm always swamped at the register and he was always busy doing "go backs" (go backs are items that people just...put on the register or decide they don't want so we have to put back) so when some mom brings in her kids and they break a bunch of stuff, we can't do much to clean it cause we're already stretched thin.
And don't get me started on people who get mad cause we don't do returns. Like no ma'am, for the 8th time, we do exchanges, not returns... God I hated working there, the customer base is horrible, so rude and disrespectful and it didn't help that we closed super late, 10pm, every other dollar tree around us closed at 8:30 or 9 but we were the most popular store in the region (from what I remember, average sales would be about 6-7k a day) so we kept our doors open longer.
Anyway, I feel sorry for any poor unfortunate souls who work there now.
I worked at a dollar tree for just 10 days for an overnight project cause they were exapnding the store. I was definitely being underpaid but I was desperate for money so I took it. Tbh some of my coworkers had more knowledge on how to do things than the manager on site because a few times I asked her a question and she seemed almost as lost as me. After a few times, I just went to the few coworkers who I knew would give me a good answer 😂
I work there now and have for 2 years. I love our store and location and my manager is competent. But I've definitely heard some horror stories about other locations in our district. And yeah the customers can be just ugh...
I used to work at a Dollar Tree as a manager. Never again. I understand it’s good for low income households but they overworked us to the point where I had white hairs and heart problems (because of my caffeine dependency trying to keep up.) Terrible company.
I had a friend who worked there while pregnant, and they were trying to have her unload heavy items from a truck.
Looking back thinking about my childhood, I'm grateful for Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. Definitely came in handy for common supplies and foods when you needed it the most. Even though I didn't necessarily grow up "poor" or "low-income", being able to get a bunch of stuff off of a single $10 or $20 bill was such a great feeling. Thats something Walmarts and Targets can never provide as everything is continuously getting more and more expensive.
Aaaaaaannd wages are staying the same... Best bet is to become a freelancer!! Corporations can fire you and ruin your life in an instant...
@@rilorobinson7685
Don't be dead weight and you won't get fired. Its neat concept.
@@postplays Most corporations can fire you for any reason they can imagine, even if its just to shut you up. Sure, you could file a wrongful termination suit, but they'll likely bury you into the ground with legal fees.
@@postplays Haha, if only it worked that way. Tell that to the millions who got laid off during Covid.
Get real, corporations don't deserve your labor in the slightest. People were more productive working outside of the office, but bosses are so worried about slackers they want to force everyone back into the office hellscape.
There was once a time in American history, in the years of Carnegie and monopolies, where it was the dream to stop working. Yes, having a job (or trade) and living off of wages was frowned upon. Sad to see that so many people are duped into believing they don't deserve the same.
@@postplays People get fired for no good reason literally all the time
I remember clearly this event like yesterday. In 2016, I bought a $25 scientific calculator from our university book store. I went to the lab telling my classmate how expensive things are. Then the next day, he brought not one but 2 calculators identical to the one I purchased the day before, with packages showing that they were 4 dollars each. To this day, I have no idea how they got the calculators so cheap.
jimmy hoffa fixed their shipping costs.
I personally really love both Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. Being somebody who grew up very poor with the water and lights being shut off for weeks on end, and finally slowly working my way up out of that position and into a more middle class position. Growing up they provided everything my family needed. Really cheap meals that just took creativity to actually piece something together that surprised others that it came from a dollar store. Cleaning supplies, drinks, random household items/necessities. All for no more than 10 bucks each?! Sure some of the items you get from those stores are nowhere near the best quality, there's no argument there. But It did well enough to get me through the roughest patch of my life. So big ups for that
honestly i love them. i live in a pretty bad situation and im only in highschool but i go there for essentials like cleaning, clothes, household stuff etc. i’m lucky enough to be able to afford food from places like aldi/trader joes where it’s not too pricey but dollar tree has came in clutch so many times
Organize with your fellow wage slaves to overthrow the systems that oppress you. It's your only hope.
Fun fact: I'm not sure if they still do it but at one point, dollar tree tried charging their employees $10 for their W2 tax forms, y'know the thing they legally aren't allowed to charge you for.
I doubt they do that, but if they did, it was probably if they wanted a paper copy, which you don't need in today's digital world.
thats fun and also a fact
thank you complete stranger on the internet
@@jimroscovius no, they refused to send out the digital and had to report them to the IRS so I could finish filing my taxes that year.
@@jimroscovius i don't know why you're bootlicking lmfao
@@payne3133 it’s not bootlicking that what low iq people say, it’s dumb to think that a Fortune 500 company with fleets of lawyers would try and do something so blatantly illegal and easy to be caught doing, sometimes it’s good to use critical thought before suckling on a yt comment
I remember in my teens I was basically legally homeless, as my dad just filed bankruptcy and we didn't have a consistent place to stay. For a few months we eventually stayed at a small house in the middle of nowhere next to a bunch of farm land. Literally the only grocery store within a 5 mile walking distance were dollar trees, despite walking past miles of farm land to even get to one.
Lies again? Design Technology USD SGD
Dollar Tree usually has very little value if you look below the surface. Yeah, you may be able to get a package of “x” for $1 when a similar package of “x” sells for $2 at Walmart, but when you examine the per unit or per ounce, then it’s often cheaper to shop at Walmart for the same brand or the “great value” brand.
Exactly. The size of their consumables is exploitative. Super small for a buck, do the math, cheaper at a real store to get the same amount.
We are throwing an Egg hunt for my building. Let’s just say the eggs came from dollar tree. The candy, did not. Mess around and spend more than $20 on small amounts of low quality candy. Nope.
Good for dieting tho
A lot of people shopping at Dollar tree can't afford to spend $2 when the $1 thing is all they can afford for the week. Then there's also people who only need a few items that are usually sold in larger packages. If you're just going to have a few people over and don't use paper plates often, why buy a 100 pack for a $5 when you can just buy a 10 pack for $1.
Speaking of which, event organizers and small business owners are some of our biggest customers. Balloons, party supplies, real plates, real cups, etc. are generally cheaper at Dollar Tree, since they're poorly made. And I can't tell you how many times I recognized DT party merch when watching the news or in the background of some video.
Then there's pet supplies/children toys. Some people don't want to get big bags of treats and the small bags are like $5 at pet stores, so they get them from us. As for toys, a lot of people don't want to bother training their dog/cat to treat their toys carefully so they just buy some for a dollar. Same with children, plus parents like to use Dollar Trees as daycares and then reward their childrens' poor behavior by buying them a toy or candy.
Medication is very strictly controlled by the FDA and if you're just treating a cold or a headache, some people don't want to spend $10 on brand name medicine that are made of the same ingredients as the $1 stuff.
I could go on. Dollar Tree is classified as a convenience store for a reason. You're not paying for value, you're paying to not have to go to 8 different stores to get the best deals and not needing to go to a big box store to get more than you need or can afford.
@@ANullAssault I think you are missing their point. Often, too often, the cheap DT offering is actually more expensive for less once you look at unit price.
Sure, there are all those reasons you listed for why it can be good.
But being too broke isn’t one of them. That’s the scam of it.
It’s always more expensive to be poor.
@@MoonFairy929 as a manager of one for 5 years, I can assure you being too broke is definitely one of them. Homeless people, people with disabilities, on welfare, etc. I've had people break down crying because their card couldn't afford $5 of merchandise.
As someone in a small town, the only two stores we really have are family dollar and dollar general. So we are pretty much forced to shop there or go to the next town over.
Dollar stores are good places to pick up a few things you need quickly when the quality doesn't really matter. Maybe you just need some paper plates, napkins and plastic forks because you're serving cake at an office birthday party later today. You could go to the supermarket, but you just went two days ago and it would take longer just to park there than it would take to run into a place like Dollar Tree.
The quality of products is often better than grocery stores; Walmart has nicer stuff for often cheaper prices by the oz but there’s a lot more floor to walk & shop.
Dollar Tree has plenty of brand name items. I use Crest 3D white toothpaste, they have it, I buy shower liners from Dollar Tree since they have to be replaced every month or so, snacks along with countless other odds and ends.
If you’ve noticed, the trend in brick and mortar retail stores over the past 30-40 years is that the retailers that catered to the middle class like JC Penney, Montgomery Ward, Sears, etc. are either long gone or soon to be gone. Dollar stores are thriving catering to the poor customers as are the higher end retailers that cater to high income customers. Kind of tells you where we’ve been heading under capitalism for quite some time.
Most middle class people have switched to amazon.
@@carlose4314 no they haven’t lmao tf Amazon has to do with this? They’re challenging Walmart not jcpenneyw
@@anonymousanonymous4690 yes they have, statistically speaking the middle class has actually grown in recent times, also yes Amazon is actually a larger company and outperforms both Walmart and JCPenney so yes clearly that is where the middle class has went and I’m one of them
Middle class is growing recent years and Amazon is the reason for the death of brick and mortar stores. Why leave your house when you can spend bout half the money and get it at your door step the next day
@@frozen9065 also why spend 2-3x as much just to "support" a local business of resellers? people forget that the reason walmart drove those "mom and pop stores" out of business, is cause they were selling the same shit as walmart, just for much more expensive because they are buying at retail price from retail stores, and simply doubling or tripling the price.
I find Amerian shopping habits quite intriguing. It makes me reflect on what types of shops are available here in europe and why I choose the outlets I'm choosing.
In high-school we always went to dollar tree to get snacks, drinks or trinkets. That treasure hunt experience was really quite fun. We'd always go back to class with a new inflatable shark or something just because "it was only $1"
I think it's company policy to always have only one person working the register, even though they have like 5 or 6 checkout stands... only when the line gets ridiculously long like into the aisle is when they'll get two, but still very rare
It’s like that everywhere. They want to save as much payroll money as possible. It’s pure greed nothing else. I thank the universe every day that I’m no longer a cashier.
im thankful for the dollar tree for supplying my family with basic things like dish soap sponges cleaner etc i also used a dollar tree pocket knife as my edc knife and it worked and it still works tho i dont carry it anymore im still thankful to have the dollar tree around i even bought food there before its helped alot
_Alot_ is a town in India. _A lot_ is more than one of something; multiples of.
@@coloradostrong we have a spelling Nazi!
Where are you from? In the two states I’ve lived in (NJ, NY), they don’t sell knives.
I’m a store manager for Dollar Tree. I would have a heart attack if my store looked as bad as the one you showed. I am lucky as I have a good crew and my store is in a very nice area…
It's amazing the difference between Dollar Trees in different income areas. There's a much richer area next to my workplace and the DT there is so much nicer.
I've yet to find a nice Family Dollar in my state, though.
@@belot217 There's a Family Dollar on the outskirts of town where I live. It feels like I've gone back in time 20 years when I walk into that store.
Imagine collecting your paycheck when your shop looks like a garbage dump, how can you live with such mediocrity and low esteem? Do people not take pride in their work, even if it’s humble?
@@Lazirus951 The family dollar in my town gives a very "outdated" vibe.
@@enlyr4069 I work at a DT and our store looks like a mess because no one ever recovers, the Store manager is an idiot, and the stocking team does nearly all the hard work, but they get a very small amount of hours. Stocking hours are so bad that you'd be lucky to get 3 days of work in a week. You can only do so much when management and corporate are so incompetent.
Being in the army, I LOVE dollar stores. It allows me to save money on basic things such as cleaning products, toilet paper, toothpaste and more. Why go anywhere else when all I have to do is spend $1? It's not great for other things (imo), but for basic items it's unmatched
...$1.25
Ooooo, that .25¢ is super scary
@@mohamedbaradji7504 25% inflation when it's not matched by 25% wage increases is a genuinely scary thing.
Dang, Sad, When The Military Member Is In Cheap Ole Dollar Tree. My Pride would not allow me as a soldier.
@@AndriaaLeoLove Proverbs 11:2 “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” Proverbs 16:5 “The LORD detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.” Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”
When I was very very poor it was nice being able to estimate my total based on the number of items in my basket. Sometimes the same thing was very slightly cheaper at Walmart, but it was much easier to get a variety of things for $20 than at Walmart
Excellent point about the treasure hunt at dollar tree! Thats very true!
I went there earlier hoping to "save" on certain household items but they kind of trick you. Say there's a certain item at Walmart that's $3-$4 per package. If you go to Dollar Tree you'll see a $1 package of that product but when you factor in the smaller volume you realize you'd need to buy 3 or 4 anyway to get what you'd already get at Walmart for that price.
Nah, your just looking at it wrong. You grab it if you need it quick but probably not a lot at that moment and just need enough to do what you gotta do and maybe even more since the amount you get is pretty decent tbh. You know your not getting as much but it’s still enough to get you by.
Well some people really wouldn't need that $3 to begin with. If I have $50 to budget for the week and I need some bleach for a single stained clothing, its better to buy just buy at dollar tree and get 2 extra meat options rather than buying a bigboy bleach that I would really only need to use once.
Happy Feet so go without for that week and save up money to get the better deal.
Ha, you figured it out. Good eye.
Then buy that idem at Walmart. If you are an older single person on a fixed income DT gets the job done. I am not doing dishes for a family of 5 now. 1 small bottle of Ajax works just fine.
Dollar Tree is not bad but you still have to be careful when you want to get the full value for your dollar.
Paying $40k per container to import container from China. Before Covid we payed around $12k. Great video and new subscriber here!
Holy hell! I’m starting to think this economy is lagging, granted I’m still on the fence.
@@grengrenhuskey The Economy is dead and 23-24 will be much worse
won't be until '25 when we start to see a change in direction.
It was better to pay the Trump tariff. The economy was so much better then.
@@jimroscovius you do realize the economy was fucked through the entire planet as a consequence of a globalized economy and an unpredictable world event and can’t be magically fixed by the president of one country right
@@jimroscovius
But trump bad
I didn’t realize how prevalent Dollar Tree actually was …also you get what you pay for.
If dollar tree wasn’t serving people to an extent, then they wouldn’t be in business so the value must be there to a degree
There are a shit ton of poor people in America. Murica is small islands of extreme wealth surrounded by oceans of poverty.
Dolla dolla store is just another parasite feeding on the desperation of the poors.
It used to be valuable to people in need. Then in 2016 rich people "discovered bargain shopping", and they really ruined the supply and demand in Dollar stores. The CEO caught on, and in 2019 renewed the contract to include: a price increase, brand names, buying out Dollar General and Family Dollar, and closing stores in low income neighborhoods in favor of high income neighborhoods.
Its fucked. The issue is the more we ignore it the more it will happen to various franchises. A lot of people don't care now because they can afford the price increase. But thay day will come when we all screwed
Discovered the channel due to algo and love it
It's like a more in depth version of company man that requires a little more business knowledge
While the 25 cent price bump came at a bad time of OTHER price increases...frankly I had been surprised they had managed to hold at $1.00 for literally decades (though some products did get smaller).
They were a godsend when I was broke, saving me sometimes $2 to 3 on an item. And, VERY surprisingly, the quality of the products was good..like a laundry detergent, which can be tricky, even with name brands.
And I'd still have money for 2 or 3 less neccessary, frivolous things as a treat. So it was fun, too.
And yes...I did notice the employees were surprisingly nice. I also, accidentally left a 12 pack of toilet paper, ( which is $$) bought at another store...and they saved it for a week, till I could get back. So yeah, I love DOLLAR TREE.
Quite literally the most underrated channel I’ve found. Calling it now, 1 million subscribers before 2022 ends
Why would people be against Dollar Trees popping up in their area? As someone that came from an incredibly poor family, Dollar Tree was a MASSIVE help for us. Was the quality of the food and other stuff good? Not really, but when you're dirt poor you take what you can get. Plus there are some products sold there that are actually pretty decent, and you can find more if you're willing to experiment with some of the food there
SMH. Money ain’t everything but broke people should think real before bringing babies into the world. Anybody should really
Dollar tree forces out a lot of other stores that otherwise exist, and they profit from food deserts. Where I used to live (very poor rural area in wny) we had a neighborhood grocery store that had actual produce and healthier options. And then dollar tree opened. Because you could one stop shop there, and they were able to operate at a loss until the grocery closed, they eliminated the only healthy food option for an hours drive in any direction. There is a reason your zip code correlates to lifespan. Food deserts kill.
Because they close small businesses and mom and pops.
You’re literally getting forced out of way healthier options than at dollar tree for the sake of spending less money.
Those low costs are coming out of your health.
As a worker of an H2 (it means both dollar tree and family dollar) store, I can say that the company gets these big margines by paying next to nothing. While it grows fast, it doesn't put anything back into it's stores beyond product. It can be incredibly frustrating to try to get your DM to help with an issue that cannot be resolved at the store level, and next to impossible if a new store is being opened in your district, there's one every 3 or 4 months.
It'll be profitable, but the workers tend to be weighed down with unreasonable amounts of work. Cleaning a 9,000 sq foot store takes time, but they'll alot 2 work hours for it.
Our front door has been broken for 2 years and every repair man says "this is a bandaid and will only last a few weeks I'll email them to replace it" but it's still broken
'Help with an Issue that cannot be resolved at the store level' is not a concept any retailer understands sadly, they're all the same.
The only thing DM cares about is the store looking good when the suits are in town.
Have you tried, I don’t know, working elsewhere ?
@@ihmpall easier to complain than to take responsibility for their life choices
Whoever you are, I enjoy your insightful analysis in all your videos! Wish your videos were available like 10 years ago when I was studying MBA in the US. As a poor student, dollar tree used to be my go-to-place for consumption product. I remember. a small bath carpet cost about $16 in Target but only $5 in dollar tree. Then when I started working after graduation, I loved visiting Trader Joes. All those grocery stores and supermarket analysis reminds me of those time. Thank you so much for making those videos! Already subscribed, and I'll keep supporting you!
Just wanna say keep this up and you'r channel is going to blow up
i got algorithm'd here
As a career army man now retired on just my government benefits these discount outlets are essential and awesome. Not a big "dollar store" guy really but man, I love, LOVE those Family Dollar stores though. I get basically everything there. My loyalty to the family dollar store chain is absolute!
@@lynnpayne6262 Sure.
There are no "government benefits", son. You are on tax-funded welfare.
Thanks, DT, we have clean and organized stores in North Texas and the employees are always friendly and can move the traffic swiftly. I am impressed and a happy customer. Please keep it affordable. Many thanks 🙏
High quality in depth analysis delivered in a comsince manner, a rarity on UA-cam.
Your content isn't getting anywhere near the level of attention it deserves, keep it up!
Dude I laughed so hard when you tried to say it's a treasure hunt to go through a store that is fucked up . That's such an American thing or maybe southern. I only know of this from my trips to Florida. No way should you try to say a dirty and unattended store is a good one .
I love going to the dollar store because it fills the void in my life.
My bf and I are recent retirees who live in a somewhat affluent town in Connecticut. We have a dollar tree next door to our Big Y, and when we were working and had more disposable income we never went to Dollar Tree. Now, we create a shopping list every week, and our first stop is Dollar Tree. We're saving a lot of money! You do need to be careful because not everything is a deal. You need to pay attention to quantities, etc.The shelves are always fully stocked, we can get things you don't see anywhere else, and the employees have always been friendly and helpful.
I have always enjoyed Dollar Tree more than FD. The FD in my town is pretty dated, cramped, and unappealing. Heck the Dollar Tree near me is a go to place because a movie theater is right beside it. Smuggling candy or popcorn was a mandatory thing lol.
When I was growing up I always had fond memories of going to Aldi, Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, and Dollar General. My favorite when I was much younger was the dollar tree. You could find such neat things at Aldi and Dollar Tree, and you could afford to buy quite a bit. When I was younger money was tight, and you really learned the value of a dollar. Later money was not nearly as tight, but I still loved Dollar Tree and Aldi.
Today my favorite store is Aldi for my food, and Dollar Tree for my stuff. I work long hours, and really enjoy the small foot print and affordability of these kind of stores. You can be in and out of a Dollar General or Dollar Tree in 15 minutes. You really can't do that with a Walmart or Kroger.
Also, I remember distinctively the one year where Valentine's Day had the whole store ceiling covered from front to back with heart balloons and dangling strings to where it blotted out all lights and looked like something out of a discount Junji Ito nightmare, it was surreal
At Walgreens, chips and candy cost four to six dollars. At Dollar Tree, chips and candy are one to one-twentyfive. I bought a boat load of candy last month for Halloween and the total price was seven-teen dollars. I thought I would have to pay thirty dollars for candy but it was low costing. Dollar Tree is the store you can trust.
I just subbed. Gonna binge watch. The layout of your videos, approach, and topics are great. I definitely can remember what I learned. I hope you don’t try to change to what everyone else is doing as you grow. The directness is perfect. One thing though. You gotta slow down talking just a little bit, hearing a tripped up word kinda detracts from the experience. Also the sharp edits in your voice over do the same thing. Other than that, I can’t wait to see this channel blow up from that one vid that catches popularity Already hooked for more content.
I think it would also be interesting to explore the Canadian counterpart: Dollarama. They not only open a lot of stores in poorer areas but also in very rich areas as well, which I think is pretty interesting. They know that even the rich sometimes just want some $1 items as well and they are everywhere in Eastern Canada.
Haven’t seen them expand much out here in the west. But about one in every 2 Dolloramas I wouldn’t consider to be placed in a “low income” place.
The quality of your videos are extremely high! I can see the amount of effort, research, and time you in every video. Keep up the great work :)
For some reason, Dollar Tree makeup works the best for my mother. It seems that Dollar Tree is not carrying the specific brand as much but each time we go to one we always walk out with something even if it isn't her makeup.
Your videos are awesome! You remind me of Company Man, but not glossing over the depressing parts of the modern economy
Honestly I'm very happy that I found your channel. Thank you for the informative, well researched videos. Keep it up!
There's hundreds of channels like this on youtube
@@robertsaget6918 ok?
Dollar tree and dollar general is like a mall in my neighborhood, where there's NOTHING there
2:08 - 2:56 I find this characterization problematic. It's not their fault that there are poor people in car-dependant suburban wastelands that have no other option than to shop at Dollar Tree.
Rather the chain is providing a valuable service without which folks would have to travel long distances say, by bus to reach a large store.
The countys opposing the move come off as not wanting to be a place accessible to poor people by allowing Dollar Tree to open there. I sorta understand that they derive the majority of their revenue from property taxes, and having peasants in their suburb will drive down property values, but their dire financial straits is a consequence of being a suburban wasteland, which requires a lot more infrastructure for lower productivity. Check out Charles Marohn's 'Strong Towns' for more on this issue.
I dont shop at Dollar Tree 🌲 anymore especially since they raised their prices to $1.25!
Your videos are so under rated. Should be getting a lot more views.
I just observed a lady walk into dollar tree with a duffle bag...
Fill it up with items...
Then she walked right out.
She didn't appear to be in desperate need or on drugs or homeless at all. Appeared to be clean and normal. Had a soccer mom van parked outside...
....the cashier just watched her and called the cops. It was so so weird.
Never thought I'd see someone steal from there..
wow rly?? why not a whole foods lol
@@linusmlgtips2123 right . I think all she stole was snacks and junk. Its not like it was tissue or cleaning products. You know something useful 🤣
@@linusmlgtips2123 Probably easier to stay under that $100 threshold for a simple Class C Misdemeanor charge of 'Petty Theft' than at a Whole Foods lol.
@@B2k4E good point
My bestie worked at one in Oregon for a few years and I swear every single week, she was the only one there and practically deep cleaned the store early on and she was covering everyone else's shifts and redid the entire balloon station to immaculate perfection and thwarted several robbery attempts in the dead of night and she STILL wasn't considered for manager position.
What's interesting is that dollar tree/family dollar/dollar general isn't really a new concept. They are actually incredibly old. they are incredibly similar to the old local retail franchises like the one Sam Walton started out in "Ben Franklins". Five and dime or "nickel stores" started with woolworths in the 1879 Which were themselves run very similarly to any old variety shop since the beginning of commerce. Big box stores are just a new experiment in retail when you think about it.
dollar tree has been my go to store for years, the recent price increase of 25 cents has really hurt.
I'm sorry for your poverty.
Dollar tree was my first job and its a fact that they make most of their annual revenue on Birthday Balloons
Another thing is that Dollar tree doesn't make you feel poor. Most of them are nice and pleasant. Easy to get into. And always have something interesting. I NEVER seen a dollar tree that messy in the video. That's just bad management.
I'd be curious what the comparison of annual sales *per square foot* between family dollar/tree and target and Walmart. Then you'd really see how they stack up.
Based
dollar tree's business model is an awesome antithesis of the buy bulk and waste consumerism of most stores. the only thing they should be canceled for is lack of self checkout, resulting in very long lines
These videos are fantastic. Your presentation style is easy on the ears and you're knowledgeable. Eager to see what videos you do next.
Some of my favorite stuff to buy at dollar tree are cleaning supplies, toothbrushes, hair products, and makeup products. Their makeup is so cheap that i can experiment with different types of makeup and colors like eye shadow
Quality content and depth of research. Subbed. Great stuff!
Spent some time in Poland shopping at discount stores like Dealz and Biedronka. There places were well stocked and always clean and organised.
Dollar tree killing my vibes when they increased prices
We are middle class. My mom was always obsessed with dollar stores even going back 20-25 years ago. While my mom does still shop there a lot, we stock up at other places where we get better prices in bulk to lesson inflation. Not everything at dollar stores is good quality or a good deal. And people need to understand that. Sadly many Americans have no other choice. That's just the reality of this country.
its true. we were living next to a dollar tree for a while and we were going in for a few things consistently, especially for gift stuff like cards, balloons, bags, and tissue paper. yeah it would probly be a better deal paying a little more at walmart/target next door but at dollar tree we dont have to deal with THE LINES!!!! well pay more per unit if it means we dont have to deal with people and lines
he really called oscar mayer hotdogs essentials lol someones got jokes
It’s always one person for the register, and it’s especially long if they’re blowing up balloons 😔
PREY UPON THE POOR??? What?!? Every time I have been in a financial slump the dollar store is my savior. I have nothing but gratitude for Dollar Tree. Family Dollar on the other hand can go suck an exhaust pipe. Over priced crap.
I agree that the predatory narrative is completely overblown by wealthy people who don't know what they're talking about. the only people dollar tree is predatory to is their employees. dollar tree is overwhelmingly less predatory for customers than eg. walmart. I've never had a price error issue in dollar tree, for example.
I don't like the variable prices of family dollar, but I really wish dollar tree jumped to $2.5 or $3
$2 is a great price point that would let them bring back a lot of quality products, but many suppliers would find it difficult to rework their quantities. if they made the jump to $2.5 or $3 while maintaining the flat rate pricing, then they could easily bundle the existing products and bring back a lot of great stuff.
hell yea I dont know what this guys problem is
The quality of products sold at these stores improved significantly during the previous decade; 2 & a half decades ago the products were barely acceptable.
It’s so true the products are good as about as good as Walmart I have found.
In my country we have similar stores, they called FixPrice. They sell general goods including food and that can i say is that goods is generally crappy and food is quite bad. You can safely buy some canned fish (not just any, select one) or pickles, but in general its bleeh.
Keep it up, your channel idea is amazing and each video is very insightful
What folks don't realize is that buying these products in those sizes actually ends up costing you much more in the long run if you are an habitual customer. Family Dollar opened up here across from a beat up trailer park as their primary grocery/odds and ends store. I go in there about twice a year out of curiousity. Sure, their stuff is cheap- but the sizes and quality of the stuff is basically disposable. I use Dollar Tree for gift bags and cards... paper centerpieces, plastic drop cloths, tea lights, etc. I had a big score there the other day with finding red glass bottles for my bottle tree. Ended up much cheaper than Amazon's comparables.
Most lower income people legit can’t afford to buy in bulk since a lot of people are paycheck to paycheck sadly
It’s really sad because there are so so so many amazing products at DT and because they are often not big box store brands, the products will often go to waste if they were not available to DT or Dollar General/Family Dollar. The only sad thing is, I feel like brands who know they will be launched in DT stores will often manufacture their products to be smaller+have more packaging. Buying in bulk at a regular supermarket if you have access to it sometimes is more cost effective. I like going in and seeing what they have for pantry staples, because the quality is often the same as a regular super market. Gnocchi is my favorite to buy, but sometimes you can find stellar deals on sugar. I found 2lb fair trade cane sugar for a $1.25. That’s like $0.63 for a lb. I think you pay more for the processed foods in the DT, but staple foods are often a good deal. Just make sure to double check on canned goods, because basics like tomato sauce is often cheaper at WALL·E world like 89 cents a can instead of $1.25
for some reason my local dollar store is the most clean one ive ever seen
that needs to change.
I wanted to say this content is very high quality, I hope you continue making it (There is a real audience for videos like this, ive only just now discovered your channel).
Thank you
Dollar tree is actually a savior for me.
Love your videos! Nice seeing commentary on UA-cam that is well-researched and data-focused
There's hundreds of channels like this on youtube
watching this as a European feels weird considering how many small privately owned stores there are literally everywhere.
going down any street in any city will get you to a store within 3 minutes
for real tho, dollar stores in America are shockingly trash compared to Daiso in Korea and Japan. Those actually have useful stuff and decent snacks and not just a bunch of cheap, flimsy crap
Idk about Daiso in Japan but US Daiso has like the same product quality lmao. $1.50 pens that dry out in a week
The check out lady at my dollar store went to the first Woodstock. There is some really avant-garde design in the products. Pop Artist would have a field day at the Dollar Store.
In BC our dollar trees/ dollar stores are not $1 they're around $6 or more. They're cheaper than buying from the grocery store but the cost still adds up
We have similar retail oulet: 'Poundland' in the UK. However, they have now moved away from being "£1 everything" to adopting the conventional supermarket pricing.
not going to lie... had to stifle my sophomoric giggle at the name "Poundland" 😅😂
@@casualeann 🤣🤣
In europe, quite obvious that shops would be smaller. When looking at the size of dollar tree, It was comparable to a regular sized supermarket here in the UK within a town. The size of walmart looked like a costco or even a shopping centre.
Didn’t start going to dollar tree until I went to college (which is ironic since I grew up about 15 minutes away from their corporate headquarters) but I fucking love it. It’s perfect for buying essentials, and also dumb stuff too.
I love dollar tree! Stuff like their glass vials, super glue, epoxy, electrical tape, and stuff are as good as any other generic brand
their glassware is a steal, cocktail glasses, wine glasses beer mugs etc
I used to work at dollar tree with my 2 best friends, all as shelf stockers. That store looked like shit.
Ahhh yes the family dollar stores where there is always one employee working there all the time.
I used to live in a neighborhood where the only walkable place I could buy food at was Dollar Tree. Even then, it was a 20 minute walk 😭
Family Dollar only stays in business because they are placed in low income areas and are often the only or closest choice.
The prices of Family Dollar are every bit as high as Wal Mart or other stores. A lot of times, the lower priced items also have less product in the packaging, deceiving you into thinking it’s a deal.
I used to live near a shopping strip that had FD, 99 Cents Only and a La Michoacán in it, along with payday loan and other sketch places. FD never managed to disappoint and I’d only go there in an emergency. Those times are behind me though.
Here in UK we have Poundland and the concept is very similar. Only thing i noticed in the latest years is that you start getting self checkout and look a bit "smarter". To be honest what matters is the price and even if there was no recession i would shop there regardless because I don't think that buying the same product from 2 different stores make the quality of the product different.
Your opening line describing a Dollar Tree is about 3 years out of date. That was the last time everything in a Dollar Tree was actually a dollar.
I love dollar tree because they don't have any damn self checkouts and they don't treat their customers like criminals.
Enjoyed your analysis and videos !
A lot of times dollar tree is actually very expensive for what you get sometimes it’s better just to go to a regular store pay the regular price for a regular size package yet so much more for each dollar
I’ve been to so many dollar trees back in the day, and even the ones that are up and near me now, I’ll be completely honest, aren’t worth going to. I know that for a grand majority of people, they take advantage of the low income majority of people out there to the point that, the quality of what they sell just isn’t worth the time out of your day to buy. It’s the same with Walmart, but at least Walmart shows that they’re that way, and don’t get me wrong, dollar tree is that way too, but I never really liked either. Quality control is definitely important in my eyes, and if someone’s willing to do the barebones minimum to give off a store that is similar to dollar tree or worse, I wouldn’t be surprised by the amount of people dwindling as time goes on. Dollar tree is different however, and while I may not like it, and would rather go to Costco to get the same stuff, or similar stuff, I don’t see myself personally liking Dollar Tree anytime soon.
Dollar stores are pretty great especially for the younger children you can let them buy a couple of things for themselves without much worry about the cost.
Lol comparing the size of dollar tree to a Walmart really makes you realize the monstrous scale of those stores