In its quarterly results on Wednesday, the famous Montreal-based retailer Dollarama showed that it is not immune to the inflationary pressures that every sector of the economy is feeling at the moment, revealing that it soon plans to sell items that cost up to $ 5. Currently, the most expensive items the chain sells cost $ 4 and most cost less than that. “This will allow the company to maintain and enhance its wide range of products and its imperative value,” the company said. The company, which has 1,421 stores across Canada, said that while the Omicron variant of the new coronavirus hit its business hard during the busy holiday season, overall the company did relatively well, with sales of $ 1.22 billion. dollars – up from $ 1.1 billion this time last year, and quarterly profits of $ 220 million, up from $ 173 million a year ago. This was achieved “in navigating the ebb and flow of the pandemic impact on retailers and consumer market models and in the context of supply chain and inflationary pressures,” said Neil Rossy, president and CEO of Dollarama. In the coming months the company states that it expects to benefit from a positive sales environment compared to the same period last year. However, he warned that pressures on the supply chain and other inflationary pressures are expected to become more pronounced this year. While the company benefited from the opening of 24 new stores during the quarter, existing stores also showed higher sales, with sales of the same stores growing by 5.7 percent across the chain. The company says its total trading volume grew by more than 10 percent in the quarter, even as the average customer account shrank by 4 percent. This suggests that customers shopped more often but bought less with each visit to the store. The strong financial performance gave the chain the confidence to increase its dividend to shareholders by 10%. From now on, the company will pay 5.53 cents per share. This is higher than 5.03 cents per share in the past.

Dollar stores have not been dollar stores for a long time, says the retail expert

This is definitely not the first time Dollarama has raised the price cap on the products it sells. While the chain once sold goods for $ 1 or less, that all changed in 2009 when the company added products at $ 1.25, $ 1.50 and $ 2. Doug Stephens, founder of the consulting firm Retail Prophet, says the recent news is part of a trend where dollar stores offer a wider range of products and even dare to wear clothes and small appliances. “The question for dollar store executives is how will you continue to grow if you put a ceiling on your top price?” he said. Futurist retailer and author Doug Stephens says dollar stores are expanding the range of products they have been offering for years in response to the growing appetite and need for cheap goods. (Doug Stephens / YouTube)
Moving from Dollarama is a response to consumers looking for increasingly cheaper products, Stephens said. There are not many players competing for price with dollar stores yet, he said. “They are still extremely cheap,” Stephens said. However, the expansion of dollar stores into more product categories also reflects how the polarization of income and wealth is forcing more Canadians to rely on dollar stores for the needs of their consumers. “This has allowed dollar stores to move to higher-priced goods now,” he said.

title: “Five Dollarama Cost Conscious Retailer Plans To Start Selling Some Items For Up To 5 " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-15” author: “Carmen Campbell”

In its quarterly results on Wednesday, the famous Montreal-based retailer Dollarama showed that it is not immune to the inflationary pressures that every sector of the economy is feeling at the moment, revealing that it soon plans to sell items that cost up to $ 5. Currently, the most expensive items the chain sells cost $ 4 and most cost less than that. “This will allow the company to maintain and enhance its wide range of products and its imperative value,” the company said. For low-income Canadians like Calgary’s Amber Cannon, Dollarama is more than just a discount store. it is also a grocery store. Amber Cannon, a Calgary resident based on disability benefits, says she worries people will have to give up meals as food insecurity becomes a growing problem. (Colin Hall / CBC)
Cannon, which suffers from celiac disease and receives disability benefits, says it relies on Dollarama for a range of products, including any gluten-free items available. As prices continue to rise in discount stores and elsewhere, Cannon says it is concerned about those in similar or worse economic conditions than it is. “I’m worried more and more people will be left without meals,” he said, adding that he had to give up meals to make ends meet. Meaghon Reid, executive director of the Vibrant Communities Calgary anti-poverty group, says her organization estimates that at least one in 10 Calgary residents live in poverty.

How a $ 1 price increase could affect people living in poverty

Meaghon Reid, executive director of the Vibrant Communities Calgary anti-poverty group, explains how even a small price increase could seriously affect the budget for those living in poverty. 0:46
And for them, even a $ 1 price increase could have a devastating effect. “For a person living in poverty, it can mean the difference between a meal that night, the difference between paying your rent that month, the difference between being able to even take your child to school. “, he said.

Dollarama to pay higher dividend as profits increase

The company, which has 1,421 stores across Canada, said that while the Omicron variant of the new coronavirus hit its business hard during the busy holiday season, it did relatively well overall – with sales of $ 1.22 billion. from $ 1.1 billion last year, and quarterly profits of $ 220 million, up from $ 173 million a year ago. This was achieved “in navigating the ebb and flow of the pandemic impact on retailers and consumer market models and in the context of supply chain and inflationary pressures,” Dollarama President and CEO Neil Rossy said in a statement. In the coming months, the company says it expects to benefit from a positive sales environment compared to the same period last year. However, he warned that pressures on the supply chain and other inflationary pressures are expected to become more pronounced this year. While the company benefited from the opening of 24 new stores during the quarter, existing stores also showed higher sales, with sales in the same stores growing by 5.7 percent across the chain. The company says its total trading volume grew by more than 10 percent in the quarter, even as the average customer account shrank by 4 percent. This suggests that customers shopped more often but bought less with each visit to the store. The strong financial performance gave the chain the confidence to increase its dividend to shareholders by 10%. From now on, he will pay 5.53 cents per share, up from 5.03 cents per share previously.

This is not the first time the chain has raised prices

This is definitely not the first time Dollarama has raised the price cap on the products it sells. While the chain once sold goods for $ 1 or less, that all changed in 2009 when it added products at $ 1.25, $ 1.50 and $ 2. Doug Stephens, founder of the consulting firm Retail Prophet, says the recent news is part of a trend where dollar stores offer a wider range of products and even dare to wear clothes and small appliances. “The question for dollar store executives is how will you continue to grow if you put a ceiling on your top price?” he said. Futurist retailer and author Doug Stephens says dollar stores are expanding the range of products they have been offering for years in response to the growing appetite and need for cheap goods. (Doug Stephens / YouTube)
Moving from Dollarama is a response to consumers looking for increasingly cheaper products, Stephens said, adding that there are not many players still competing on price with dollar stores. “It’s still extremely cheap,” Stephens said. However, the expansion of dollar stores into more product categories also reflects how the polarization of income and wealth is forcing more Canadians to rely on dollar stores for the needs of their consumers. “This has allowed dollar stores to move to higher-priced goods now,” he said.