Last Monday, Dollar General, the U.S.’s largest dollar-store chain, posted better-than-expected profits, helping boost the company’s stock, which is up 15% year to date. And earlier this year, it announced plans to open its 11,000th store by the end of the 2013 — an impressive figure for a discount retailer. The only other companies to boast store counts that high are fast-food chains like McDonald’s and Subway.
And Dollar General isn’t the only dollar chain to have had success in recent years. Competitors Dollar Tree and Family Dollar have also experienced significant growth in revenue since the 2008 recession, when many consumers began shopping at discount chains for everyday items like cleaning supplies, toiletries and groceries. Another boon to these sorts of discount chains has been government safety-net programs like food stamps, which prevented those already shopping at dollar stores from being shut out altogether from being able to afford necessities. According to Morningstar analyst Michael Keara, 40% of dollar-store-sector customers rely on some form of government assistance.