Retailers around the country — from Toys R Us to Footlocker and J. Crew — are closing stores in droves. But Dollar General is doing just the opposite.
The discount store has opened more stores than ever before, with more than 5,000 new locations across the U.S. since 2010. The brand now has more than 14,000 stores in the country — or just about as many as McDonald’s.
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For their expansion, Dollar General targeted parts of the country that have been slow to rebound from the recession — low-income, rural communities that larger retailers won’t touch. And the brand is making a lot of money doing it.
VICE News traveled to Kansas, where the rise of the discount store has spurred the fall of another, arguably more crucial type of establishment: small, local grocery stores.
This segment originally aired March, 15, 2018, on VICE News Tonight on HBO.
