Goodlettsville, Tenn. — Dollar General (NYSE: DG) has unveiled plans to open approximately 1,000 new Popshelf stores by the end of fiscal year 2025, including roughly 100 stores in fiscal year 2022.
Each Popshelf store spans approximately 9,000 square feet and offers seasonal and home décor, health and beauty products, cleaning supplies and party goods. The target customer is primarily female, lives in the suburbs and maintains an annual household income ranging from $50,000 to $125,000, according to the retailer.
Dollar General, which is based in Goodlettsville near Nashville, debuted the Popshelf concept last fall and opened its first two stores in Tennessee in October 2020. At the end of its fiscal third quarter, Dollar General operated 30 Popshelf stores in six states and 14 store-within-a-store formats, which combine the offerings of Popshelf with DG Market, a larger footprint store that focuses on groceries. By February 2022, Popshelf is on track for 50 stores, as well as up to 25 store-within-a-store formats.
“Throughout Popshelf’s first year, we’ve been very pleased by the customer demand for the concept’s on-trend merchandise, price points and shopping experience,” says Emily Taylor, Dollar General’s executive vice president and chief merchandising officer. “Popshelf is an integral part of Dollar General’s innovative and long-term strategy as we continuously look for ways to best serve customers and diversify the relevant goods we offer.”
The company also announced the planned expansion into Texas with the first Popshelf stores slated to open in the Lone Star state in early 2022. The first two Texas locations will be in San Antonio and McKinney.
Each Popshelf store is expected to create up to 15 new jobs.
Dollar General’s announcement coincides with the release of its third-quarter results for the 13-week period that ended Friday, Oct. 29. Net sales increased 3.9 percent to $8.5 billion, while same-store sales decreased 0.6 percent. Dollar General’s 2021 fiscal year ends Friday, Jan. 28. As of July 30, Dollar General operates 17,683 stores in 46 states. Its stock price opened at $217.08 per share Friday, Dec. 3, up from $214.49 one year ago.
— Kristin Hiller