Company Snapshot: Family Dollar Thrives On the Recession

Address:
10401 Monroe Rd.
Matthews, NC, 28105

Telephone:
704 847-6961

Year Founded:
1959

Total Stores:
8,090

Total Annual Sales:
$ 10,391,457,000

Senior Executive:
Howard R. Levine- Chairman of the Board, CEO

Family Dollar more than survived the recession.  Since netting just 55 additional locations during the first year of the recession, the retailer has annually increased openings at an astonishing rate.  The year after the increase of 55 the company netted an additional 230 stores and continued to increase the size of projections and fulfill them.  Last summer at the beginning of their current fiscal year, Family Dollar projected an increase of 500 additional locations.  The company is on track to fulfill that promise.

Family Dollar was well prepared to more than survive a recession long before it began to present itself.  Before the recent turn of the century, the Levine family decided their next financial frontier was grocery.  Grocery sections were easily expanded but the real idea behind financial gold and future expansion was the considerable investment in refrigeration equipment to support the addition of perishables to the product lineup.

As the family predicted, perishables offered at typically attractive prices, would prompt shoppers to visit stores more frequently while increasing the average purchase ticket.  The success of this strategy, quickly brought in more capital, along with shoppers.

When the recession hit, groceries at attractive prices at a neighborhood location, increased the popularity of the chain’s locations.  At this time, the company found itself flush with money and was easily able to invest in now bargain retail real estate, thus facilitating a fierce expansion rate at a time when many retailers were simply struggling.