Dollar store sales have rose significantly over the last five years from $2.3 billion to about $12 billion, targeting customers with its low prices, simplicity, and convenience. Its cheap offerings are attracting middle-class and even well-off shoppers. Despite the popularity and rising income of dollar stores, the stores are in threat because of other retails that seek to steal the goods for dollar marketing.

Walmart and Canadian Tire are working their way to invade dollar stores and they have launched smaller stores with better promotions offered in dollar stores; the retails are looking forward for customers to come in to purchase one dollar items and leave the store with another shopping bag full of the purchase of regular priced items.

Stealing the marketing strategy of dollar stores may work out, but I believe that they won’t be able to win over the popularity of dollar stores. Dollar stores are already perceived in Canadian consumers’ minds as the original, cheap priced household item shops. I would rather visit a dollar store to find an item that I am looking for rather than walk into Walmart; the store name “Dollar Store” or “Everything for a Dollar”, gives an impression of being the cheapest store possible than any other place.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/how-canadas-retailers-discounted-the-rise-of-the-dollar-store/article4596897/