Dollar General Corp.

Dollar General wants to make it easier for its employees to pursue higher education.   In a newly announced partnership with Bellevue University, all full-time and part-time Dollar General employees now qualify for $8,000 and $5,250 respectively in tuition assistance after working at Dollar General for a minimum of 30 days. Plus, immediate family members of employees are eligible for up to $2,625, as well.  

Dollar General turned in mixed results for its second quarter, with gains in sales but a dip in profits and a decline in gross margins.    Net sales rose 8.1% to $5.83 billion in the quarter ended Aug. 4, compared to $5.39 billion in the year-ago quarter, better than analysts were expecting. Same-store sales increased 2.6%, also better than expected, driven by increases in average transaction amounts and customer traffic.   

Dollar General is celebrating an important milestone.   The discounter has opened its 14,000th retail location. The store is located in Dauphin, Pa.   “Dollar General is excited to celebrate our company’s continued growth by celebrating our 14,000th store grand opening today,” said Todd Vasos, CEO, Dollar General. “For nearly 80 years, Dollar General has continually been focused on delivering everyday low prices, convenience and value to the communities we serve."  

Dollar General has tapped a fast-casual restaurant executive to lead its technology and fledgling online operations.    Dollar General Corp. announced that Carman Wenkoff will join the company as executive VP and CIO, effective July 10. He replaces current CIO Ryan Boone, who recently announced his retirement.   

Mills Fleet Farm has ended its hunt for a CEO.   The Midwest retailer announced the appointment of Derick Prelle as president and CEO succeeding Wayne Sales, who has been serving as interim chief since January 2017. Sales was given the position following the departure of Duncan MacNaugton, who left to become president and COO of Family Dollar.   

Approximately 80% of low-income households will not opt for Amazon's new discounted Prime program.    That's according to a broadlines and hardlines retail report by Gordon Haskett Research Advisors analyst Chuck Grom, which looks at Amazon, Walmart, Dollar General and Dollar Tree as Amazon announced discounted Prime membership for those on federal assistance. Here are excerpts from Grom's report:   

Coinciding with its recently announced growth plan, Dollar General opened a new distribution center.    The new $100 million facility resides in Janesville, Wisconsin. It is the company’s 14th warehouse. The approximately 1 million-sq.-ft. depot, which began shipping merchandise in January, serves approximately 800 stores in nine states in the upper Midwest, and employs more than 500 employees. Along with more than 130 store locations in the state, Dollar General now has more than 1,300 employees in the state of Wisconsin.

Higher customer spending and lower advertising costs not only boosted Dollar General Corp.’s profits, but contributed to better-than-expected first quarter earnings.   For the period ended May 5, the discounter’s net sales increased by 6.5% to $5.61 billion, compared to $5.27 billion in first quarter 2016. Net income fell to $279.5 million, or $1.02 per share from $295.1 million, or $1.03 per share, a year earlier. However, this still beat the average analysts' estimate of $1 per share, according to Thomson Reuters.