Deep discount stores many Americans have never heard of, from Daiso to Dirt Cheap

Large dollar store chains like Dollar General have gained popularity.
Other chains, including some expanding to the US from abroad, attract budget-savvy customers.
From Daiso to Five Below, here are five smaller retailers competing in the discount space.

Dollar stores like Dollar General and Dollar Tree have become a major part of American retail. But they're far from the only chains attracting budget-conscious customers.

Rising inflation over the last couple of years has pushed many consumers to look for ways to save money. For some, including mid- and high-income shoppers, that's meant popping into dollar stores and other heavy discounters to buy everything from food to home goods.

The dollar store chains are opening more stores to attract more customers. Dollar General, for instance, is on the cusp of opening its 20,000th store in the US.

While Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Family Dollar dominate the dollar store space in the US, there are other chains, including a couple of foreign competitors, worth getting to know.

Here are five discount retailers competing for the attention of thrifty shoppers.

Daiso

A Daiso store in New York City. Rachel Askinasi/Business Insider

Japan-based Daiso has opened just under 100 stores in the US. It's been building a presence in this country since 2005, when it opened its first American store in Seattle, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Now, it's planning to open about 15 new stores each year in the US.

But in Japan, it has about 3,600 stores, where the stores are a common destination for discount shoppers.

Like Dollar General, Daiso uses several price points for its merchandise. In Japan, the cheapest items cost 100 Yen — about 72 US cents at the current exchange rate.

At its US stores, Daiso marks up items so that the lowest-cost products go for $1.99. From there, prices go up to about $15. Daiso's stock comes directly from Japan and includes everything from household cleaners and tableware to stuffed animals and snacks.

The chain aims to have 1,000 stores in the US in the long run, news agency Kyodo reported in November.

Miniso

TINGSHU WANG/Reuters

A decade ago, Miniso opened its first store in China. Now, the company has about 5,500 stores around the world, including 54 in the US. Among its new openings so far this year is a flagship store in Times Square, which includes everything from makeup to Hello Kitty- and Disney-branded merchandise.

About 95% of its offerings are priced at or under $10, industry publication Chain Store Age reported in 2022.

Besides New York, the company has opened stores in or near other major cities, such as Los Angeles and Houston. "The U.S. market is one of our most significant overseas markets," Bella Tu, Miniso's general manager of overseas operations, told Chain Store Age.

Dirt Cheap

Dirt Cheap calls itself "an extreme value retailer giving major brand customer returns and excess inventory a second chance." The retailer has about 66 locations, all in deep Southern states such as Louisiana and Mississippi.

Like an off-price retailer, inventory varies widely by store. This week, for instance, the chain's website showed a variety of home decor items at a store in Arkansas selling for as little as 50 cents each. Meanwhile, at a Mississippi store, one-piece swimsuits were selling for $5 each.

Earlier this year, the company closed 19 stores, the Sun reported in April. It also operates seven stores that sell building supplies under the Dirt Cheap name.

The 99 Store

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Originally called the "99 Cents Only Store," this chain has about 380 locations concentrated in California.

Like many discount retailers, inflation, both the latest bout and over time, has made it harder to do business: In 2021, the chain rebranded, dropping "cents" and "only" from its name and adding higher-priced merchandise, including fresh produce, to its stores.

Five Below

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Five Below carries a range of toys, snacks, and decor at its stores. Its name comes from its focus on products that cost $5 or less, though it also sells tech and apparel that can cost around $10.

The chain has about 1,400 stores in the US. The 134 stores it opened in 2022 made it one of the fastest-growing retailers in the US last year, according to Coresight Research.