Chain Dollar Stores

Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree are expanding at a breakneck pace across urban neighborhoods and small towns alike. There’s growing evidence that these stores are not merely a symptom of economic distress. They’re a cause of it.

Our latest reports and resources:

  • Detail the predatory tactics of dollar stores, the devastating impacts of these chains, and the need for both local and federal action.
  • How you can join the growing number of communities that are rejecting the dollar store encroachment and how your communities can encourage the development of full-service grocery stores instead.

Featured Reports & Resources

Chicago City Council Votes to Rein In Dollar Store Development

Chicago City Council Votes to Rein In Dollar Store Development

Susan Holmberg

February 21, 2024

Another city is fighting back against dollar chains. The Chicago City Council has voted to enact an ordinance that will limit development of new chain dollar stores. Over 60 other cities and towns have enacted similar ordinances in recent years, but Chicago is the largest city to date to do so.READ MORE


In the Chicago Tribune: Why Chicago Needs to Limit Dollar Stores

In the Chicago Tribune: Why Chicago Needs to Limit Dollar Stores

Kennedy Smith

February 15, 2024

"Eliminating food deserts requires many solutions. But there is one absolutely essential action: preventing dollar stores from proliferating," Tulsa City Council Member Vanessa Hall-Harper and ILSR Senior Researcher Kennedy Smith wrote in The Chicago Tribune in support of a proposal to limit dollar stores.READ MORE


On The Hustle, Kennedy Smith Explains the Bad Economics of Dollar Stores

On The Hustle, Kennedy Smith Explains the Bad Economics of Dollar Stores

Susan Holmberg

October 11, 2023

Kennedy Smith was on The Hustle to spell out why dollar stores are so problematic for our pocketbooks and our communities.READ MORE


WATCH: Fixing the Food Gap

WATCH: Fixing the Food Gap

Katy Milani

May 23, 2023

This virtual event featured Federal Trade Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya alongside community leaders, independent grocers, and advocates—to examine the ways these dominant retailers exert their power, how community leaders are fighting back, and what federal leaders must do to cultivate fairness in our food system.READ MORE


Report: The Dollar Store Invasion

Report: The Dollar Store Invasion

Stacy Mitchell

February 28, 2023

In this report, we spotlight communities rising up against dollar chains and how federal policymakers need to address the ways in which misguided policies are fueling the destructive proliferation of dollar stores.READ MORE


Stop Dollar Store Proliferation in Your Community: A Strategy Guide

Stop Dollar Store Proliferation in Your Community: A Strategy Guide

Kennedy Smith

February 28, 2023

More than 75 cities and towns have defeated dollar store projects in the last four years. Our new strategy guide can help you keep these chains out of your community.READ MORE


17 Problems: How Dollar Store Chains Hurt Communities

17 Problems: How Dollar Store Chains Hurt Communities

Kennedy Smith

February 28, 2023

Community leaders have good reason to be concerned about chain dollar stores.READ MORE


Dollar Store Restrictions

Dollar Store Restrictions

Kennedy Smith

March 23, 2023

As dollar stores multiply rapidly across the U.S., cities are developing dollar store-specific policies to rein in their growth. Such policies include “dispersal restrictions" that set limits on how close new dollar stores can be to existing ones. These ordinances account for the existing concentration of dollar stores within a neighborhood or city and help ensure that these chains cannot amass at such a density that they impede opportunities for grocery stores and other businesses to take root and grow. Our new map shows dollar store defeats and restrictions across the country.READ MORE


Audio & Video

A Food Oasis in North Tulsa

A Food Oasis in North Tulsa

Luke Gannon

March 16, 2023

A grocery store owner transforms a food desert into a food oasisREAD MORE


Toledo Takes Dollar Stores to Church

Toledo Takes Dollar Stores to Church

Luke Gannon

February 28, 2023

An Ohio pastor leads the charge against the dollar store invasion in his communityREAD MORE


Featured Media Coverage

On Columbus Radio: Stacy Mitchell Discusses the Problem of Dollar Stores

On Columbus Radio: Stacy Mitchell Discusses the Problem of Dollar Stores

Luke Gannon

March 10, 2023

On the local NPR affiliate, Stacy explains how dollar stores prey on communities. READ MORE