Dollar General has unveiled new plans to open over 700 new locations in 2025 despite previous plans to shutter 141 "challenging" stores.
According to TMJ4 News, the U.S. retail giant will open 725 new stores amid President Donald Trump's tariffs being levied on goods from China, Canada, and Mexico that are reportedly going to raise prices and make the generally low-cost products unaffordable to their consumer base, according to CEO Todd Vasos.
With the 725 new stores, Dollar General will have 600 more locations than it did at the beginning of 2025. In total, they will have almost 26,000 locations throughout the nation.
The retailer plans to close 141 locations, including 96 Dollar General and 45 Popshelf stores.
"While the number of closings represents less than one percent of our overall store base, we believe this decision better positions us to serve our customers and communities," Vasos said.
The store is, however, facing financial statements according to Vasos' grim financial report that showed a one percent drop in its year-over-year customer traffic in 2024's fourth-quarter earnings report.
The multi-billion dollar company has also seen a 49% decrease in operating profits due to mass closures. Their net income has fallen by 52.4% to $191.2 million.
"Our customers continue to report that their financial situation has worsened over the last year, as they have been negatively impacted by ongoing inflation," Vasos said, adding, "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."
"As we enter 2025, we are not anticipating improvement in the macroenvironment, particularly for our core customer. In turn, we know our customers expect value and convenience more than ever," Vasos added.
Trump has doubled the tariffs on China imports from 10 to 20% while he has imposed 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports. These nations, in turn, have imposed retaliatory tariffs, driving in fears of increased prices among retailers that will drive away customers, Vasos said.
This will not be the first time Dollar General has been impacted by Trump's tariffs. During his first term in 2018 and 2019, the stores were forced to raise prices.
However, Vasos is optimistic that the retailer is "well-positioned" to bounce back from this hardship.
To combat Amazon's presence in the realm where their delivery services have expanded to Dollar General's locations, the retail giant is collaborating with DoorDash to provide customer deliveries from over 16,000 stores.
Vasos confirmed a pilot program that will provide same-day delivery from 400 of its stores. Plans include increasing the number to 10,000 in the future.
