- Dollar General’s customers were still struggling going into 2025, its CEO said Thursday.
- Many “have had to sacrifice, even on the necessities,” CEO Todd Vasos said.
- He doesn’t expect that situation to change for the rest of 2025.
The year is off to a rocky start for Dollar General shoppers — and it’s not expected to get better, the chain’s CEO said Thursday.
Patrons of the dollar store chain have indicated that “their financial situation has worsened over the last year as they have been negatively impacted by ongoing inflation,” CEO Todd Vasos said.
“Many of our customers report they only have enough money for basic essentials with some noting that they have had to sacrifice even on the necessities,” he added.
Looking at the rest of 2025, Dollar General is “not anticipating improvement in the macro environment, particularly for our core customer,” Vasos said.
Shares of Dollar General were 5% higher on Thursday morning after the chain issued sales guidance for the year that was on the high end of analysts’ expectations.
Dollar General is the latest retailer to take a cautious stance on consumer spending for this year. Walmart executives said last month that they were taking a “measured” outlook on 2025.
A major reason is the series of tariffs that President Donald Trump has either implemented or threatened on a wide range of goods, from electronics to booze.
Retailers, including Best Buy and Target, said that they expected to raise prices in response to the tariffs.
Vasos said Thursday that Dollar General was “well-positioned to mitigate the impact in 2025” of the tariffs so far announced, though he acknowledged that the situation could change.
Even without the effect of tariffs, though, Dollar General’s target shopper is struggling, he said.
“She’s always strained, as we always say, because of her economic wellbeing, but I would tell you that she is also resourceful,” Vasos said of Dollar General’s typical customer.
Many of the chain’s shoppers are only now just getting their “sea legs” when it comes to budgeting for “the additional inflation that’s been very sticky out there,” he added. Inflation increased less than expected in February, with some items actually declining in price. Price increases for some essentials, such as food, continued rising, though.
Shoppers with higher incomes have also continued to turn to the dollar store chain as they attempt to save money, Vasos said. Discount retailers from Dollar General to Walmart have said over the last few years that more consumers with six-figure incomes started shopping at their stores as inflation rose.
“Nothing that we’ve seen so far would show that that trade-down has slowed down,” Vasos added.
One benefit for Dollar General has been some of its rivals closing stores. The chain added more party supplies to its Popshelf stores, for instance, after reports that Party City was winding down its operations, Vasos said. Dollar General has also taken market share from drugstore chains that are closing stores, he said.
“I believe that there will be further opportunity,” Vasos said.
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