Discount chain Dollar Tree is raising its maximum price to $7 in stores nationwide as inflation continues to hit shoppers around the world.
“This year, across 3,000 stores, we plan to expand our multi-priced assortment of more than 300 items at prices ranging from $1.50 to $7,” CEO Rick Dreiling said on a company earnings call . “This expanded assortment will give Dollar Tree shoppers a broader range of choices across a variety of categories, including food and snacks, beverages, pet care, personal care and more.”
The limit originally went from $1 to $1.25 in 2021 before rising to $5 last June.
Related: Dollar Tree is closing 1,000 family dollar stores
Dreiling explained that while some items on the shelves might be priced at the higher end of the spectrum, the “vast majority” would remain priced at the chain’s “entry-level fixed price,” which is $1.25.
In the same fourth-quarter 2023 earnings call earlier this month, Dreiling noted that inflation and government benefit reductions have affected the chain’s low-income customer base, and that the “demographic fastest growing” of the company’s buyers earn $125,000 or more per year.
“As time goes on, you’ll also see us integrate more multi-priced merchandise into our stores, so our shoppers will find $5 bags of dog food alongside our traditional $1.25 pet treats and toys, and our bags of $3 candy will be found in the stores candy aisle,” he said. “This is the next exciting chapter in Dollar Tree’s value story: new items, more choices and more savings.”
In the end, the chain it wants to get to a $10 price cap, but is focusing on finishing with a net positive 2024 before raising the price cap again.
“We’re continuing to march toward that goal. However, the macro environment has gotten in our way and we’re dealing with high, very high shrink numbers. We’re dealing with big changes in the mix,” Dreiling said to investors.
Dollar Tree, which owns Family Dollar, announced this month that it will close 1,000 Family Dollar locations over the next few years, 600 of which are expected to close in the first half of fiscal 2024.
Related: Dollar Tree Announced Price Increases and People Are Losing It: ‘This Is Truly the End Times I Fear’
In February 2024, a plea deal with the FDA cost the company $41.6 million after the chain was found to be storing items unsafely in one of its major warehouses. In 2023, the company filed a $1.35 million class action lawsuit from employees who claimed they were working in dangerous conditions.
The Dollar Tree was down more than 5.85% year-over-year Wednesday morning.