Tell Me About Family Dollar!

[Kathi OD]

OK, so I will admit that I am a store snob. I cannot remember the last time I was in a dollar store...they hold no interest for me. When they first started popping up and I checked them out, all I saw was junk...nothing worth spending my money on, not even if it only cost a dollar.

But yesterday, in the mail, comes this flyer for Family Dollar. They're advertising products I would actually use, and for what I think seems to be a pretty good discount. PLUS, there is a spend $25, get $5 off coupon. 25% off stuff that is already discounted is hard to pass up, especially since DH has been laid off since last June!

How likely is it that they will actually have the products that are advertised in the flyer? $2.50 for a 12 pack of Coke products (limit 2), .90 for Dawn or Joy dish detergent (15 oz), $5 Tide 2X (19-25 loads), 6" plush Easter toys $1, Disney toys (spinning wand, lantern, toy cell phone, and microphone) for $3 (good for the grands Easter baskets). I could go on, this add is FULL of stuff we use on a pretty regular basis, but I don't want to waste my time if the ad is just a tease and most of the stuff won't be available.

 

[PatsMom]

Family Dollar is not like the dollar stores you are thinking of that price everything at $1.00 - like Dollar Tree. I never waste my time going in there. My Family Dollar generally has most of the stuff advertised. Even if I don't read the ad, I stop in when I am in the area just to see what they have. I've found some pretty good bargains there.

Worth a visit to check out in my opnion.

 

[TaraPA]

We have 3 Dollar Stores in our town - a Dollar Tree, Family Dollar - and I can't even remember the other one - I think it's privately owned - Everything A Buck or something like that. Family Dollar is my least favorite of the three. You can find the items cheaper across the street at the grocery store, and the brands & quality of what they have is terrible. There's nothing in there for a dollar either - everything is $3 or $5!

Check closely at what's on sale in the flyer - at my Family Dollar it's usually a smaller package than the regular size you get in a grocery store - that's why it appears you're getting a great bargain. I got Ragu pasta sauce in there once - $1.50 a jar which was less than my grocery store...but when I got home & put the jars by my others, I saw they were 20-oz jars, not 26-oz. jars like they regularly sell. Same thing with Maxwell House coffee - $2.50 for a canister seemed great - but a regular canister is 11-oz....Family Dollar had a 9-oz. canister for $2.50. Not so great deal afterall. So just be careful!

 

[kydisneyfans]

Our Family Dollar is nothing short of a total disaster area. The store is cluttered and items are hard to find with questionable quality. They even have exploding ink tags on $5.00 curtains. I can get better deals elsewhere.

 

[medicgirl911]

I don't go to our Family Dollar either, the place is always disgusting I think a gas station bathroom may be cleaner...yours may be different tho. Somethings arent worth saving a few pennies in my opinion.

 

[tinkerdoodle]

The ONLY thing I ever buy there is their brand of that Downy Wrinkle spray stuff. It's $1.50 for a big bottle compared to the almost $4 for the small size name brand. I walk in, pick up 3 bottles of it so I don't have to go there very often, walk to the front counter, pay, & get the heck outa there! Ugh, those places are gross. They're never clean, most of their mdse. is junk or it's stained, and like someone else said the most product's sizes are smaller than the grocery store but the price per ounce isn't much better.

 

[myprincessgirlisa]

family dollars tend to be kinda messy & dirty looking(probably due to lack of staff & the volume of people shopping), but i have found some AWESOME deals there for shoes, garden supplies, kids clothes, holiday decor, sunglasses & a few odds & ends.
I think dollar stores hold some excellent deals but you do need to be aware of prices..on occasion i found it wasnt cheaper at the dollar store.

we have Dollare Tree, Big Lots, Dollar General, Family Dollar & lots of knock off stores...so lots to chose from!

 

[pumpkinfish]

My sentiments exactly a a PP said...UGH!



nasty nasty nasty. Unorganized, cramped and so dirty.
I did buy Christmas decorations and Halloween decorations there because they had markdowns...other than that I keep away.

 

[RobinFabulous]

I don't care for ours, either. I do CVS now, but I think a lot of the items they sell you can get on a better deal at Walmart.



If you're NOT using coupons, you need to look at the price per unit. Often Family Dollar may have a toothpaste for $1.50, at Walmart it may be $1.97, but twice the size.... Check that too, sometimes the smaller is the better deal, sometimes the bigger....

 

[Kathi OD]

Thank you all for your opinions.

I did find out that there is one not too far from here, BUT it is in a run-down building. I guess if I have some time this weekend I'll check it out, but I won't expect much, except to maybe be grossed out.

 

[TaraPA]

I don't care for ours, either. I do CVS now, but I think a lot of the items they sell you can get on a better deal at Walmart.



If you're NOT using coupons, you need to look at the price per unit. Often Family Dollar may have a toothpaste for $1.50, at Walmart it may be $1.97, but twice the size.... Check that too, sometimes the smaller is the better deal, sometimes the bigger....

Does your Family Dollar take coupons? Ours has a big sign (hand-written & taped on the door) that says they do not accept manufacturer's coupons.

I'll add that ours is also very dirty & disorganized as well.

 

[britfish]

ours is gross too, and the people that work there are less than desireable. On the other hand our dollar tree is clean and bright and has great things in it. They have great marker sets and workbooks and seasonal things that are a great value for $1. Don't get me wrong I venture in to the Family Dollar once in awhile, but like the PP I try to make a mad dash and get what I want and get out. Last year they had great Disney trinkets that I took as gifts for DD on our trip.

 

[Gina]

I am not a store snob by any stretch of the imagination, but every Family Dollar I've ever set foot in makes even my local Walmart look like Saks Fifth Avenue.

I'm as bargain-happy as the next DIS-budgeteer, but I draw the line at Family Dollar!

 

[kellia]

We have a Family Dollar by our house and by my work, neither one are dirty at all. Since Walmart and other stores are about 10 miles from home, I stop in there often if we run out of something like tp, cleaning stuff, holiday decorations, etc. I wouldn't buy clothes or anything like that there, but for inexpensive other items, they are fine.

 

[livndisney]

The ONLY thing I ever buy there is their brand of that Downy Wrinkle spray stuff. It's $1.50 for a big bottle compared to the almost $4 for the small size name brand. I walk in, pick up 3 bottles of it so I don't have to go there very often, walk to the front counter, pay, & get the heck outa there! Ugh, those places are gross. They're never clean, most of their mdse. is junk or it's stained, and like someone else said the most product's sizes are smaller than the grocery store but the price per ounce isn't much better.

I do that too!

 

[Magic Mom]

I can't stand family Dollar. Its icky. Now Dollar Tree is another story, DD and I love going in there.

 

[Blondiex46]

I never go to Family Dollar and there is one within walking distance. I go to Dollar General all the time and get the magnifying glasses there. I get stuff all the time there, actually love it!!

 

[tonilea]

We won't shop at our local one, but it is because we don't like the man who owns it. What a jerk! lol

 

[kadesha]

Ours isn't gross or messy and they always have lots of good stuff! I bought my girls Disney princess comforters and pillows there. They always have so much Disney princess and Mickey Mouse stuff. I get Disney window clings there all the time. They have so much. And whatever they advertise in the paper they always have. I hope you have a good experience there.

We have a dollar general too and I HATE that place. They have nothing and it's so gross and unorganized!

 

[Morgalla]

The best use for a Dollar Store (Family, Dollar General) is avioding a trip inside a bigger more stressful store, such as Wal MArt. In most cases, you are not saving a ton of money, or any at all because portion sizes are different- usually smaller. They have pretty good deals on cleaning supplies, with some available (like Mean Green) that I haven't seen elsewhere. If you need tube socks on vacation, cute ponytail holders, a gift bag and tissue, a box of tampons, toilet paper, or a 6 pack of an advertised soda it can be better and easier than going to the grocery or Wal Mart.

But they are disorganized, often dirty, and I usually avoid them in general.