For more than 30 years Dollar Tree held fast to their tag line "Everything's a dollar". Well, not any more! My last visit to Dollar Tree was quite a surprise. Now nearly everything is $1.25! I looked it up online and found this is a change that is being rolled out to all the Dollar Tree stores. If yours hasn't changed yet, it soon will. Actually, they do still have a few items at $l.00, just as they used to occasionally have had items at less than $1.00. Got to say a sudden 25% increase was a bit of a shock and a big disappointment! However, even at $1.25 a lot of what they have can still be a bargain for RVers, OHVers, campers, and boaters. Interestingly enough I recently read an online article that said we could expect more national chains of dollar stores in the near future! Apparently they can be quite profitable! Sometimes you may actually pay more per unit at Dollar Tree than you would at name brand stores because the size of items might be smaller. However, the smaller size is often a real benefit to RVers and campers and low cost makes it fairly reasonable to replace used up or expired items as needed.
Also recently notices some new items higher prices, like $5.00. So it looks like Dollar Tree is moving toward the pricing structure of their sister store, Dollar General. So, now we will have to be more careful when shopping at Dollar Tree to avoid unpleasant surprises at checkout. One more strike against them.
I understand that the cost of goods is and has been rising for years. We see it almost every day. Most retail stores routinely adjust prices as their costs go up, but, if your niche is defined by ''Everything's a dollar!" you can't do that. While I respect the economic reality that rising costs from suppliers demand increasing retail prices, I found the HUGE 25% increase at Dollar Tree quite surprising and irritating. Guess they have to make up for lost time or maybe they are hedging against the continuing increase in their cost of goods! Not sure I can suggest any really helpful alternatives. Perhaps they could follow the pattern of Family Dollar and Dollar General -- that is, to offer some higher cost items at higher prices, but still maintain the dollar price on as many items as possible. Since they are all owned by the same company that would seem to make sense. However, that being said, the consistency of prices at Dollar Tree has always been a defining factor that has motivated my loyalty -- along with knowing that ''Everything's a dollar". So, I suppose, having a uniform price of $1.25 may still have its advantages and many things may still be a better bargain than at "regular" stores. However, the 25% price increase has already affected MY shopping habits. I used to often stop by Dollar Tree just to pick up one or two items, like toothpaste or deodorant, and by the time I reached the register I typically had about $27 worth of merchandise in my cart. No more. It used to be easy to justify adding just about anything to the cart since it was ''only a dollar". But now I will be measuring each item more carefully. During my last several visits I spent far less than my typical $27 a visit (usually under $10!), even at the higher $1.25 prices and I expect I will continue to do so. I am definitely buying less at Dollar Tree than I used to.
Is Dollar Tree still a viable source of supplies for your camping and boating activities? Yes, I would think so. Even at $1.25 their prices are still a lot less than you will usually pay at regular retail outlets. Sometimes the price per item or price per ounce may add up to more than larger sizes at regular stores, but the smaller sizes (and lower prices) are often very helpful for campers etc. For example, getting each plate or bowl or saucer for just $1.25 is pretty inviting, but consider how much you will spend for a complete 8-place set (3x8x$1.25 = $30). You can often buy a full set of dinnerware for around $24.
Does this mean I will stop shopping at Dollar Tree? Probably not, but it will very likely mean I will be buying fewer items each time I go there. In my opinion, they will find they have shot themselves in the foot with this new pricing policy. Instead of increasing profits through higher prices expect they will see a drop in sales with a corresponding drop profits. Historically I have often gone in just to pick up one thing and by the time I got to the register I usually spent about $27. My total for each of several recent trips since the price change was under $10! So I guess I should thank them for continuing to save me money, just in a different and less rewarding way. Funny how that additional 25 cents has impacted what I buy, or rather, don't buy!
Dollar Tree Dollar Twenty-five Tree!
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