A Dollar General employee has revealed the retail giant’s allegedly sneaky way of tricking shoppers into spending more money on a sale item.
The video posted on TikTok shows a woman claiming to be a dollar store employee allegedly changing the price of an item that will be on sale to the original price on the shelf.
The video, posted by a woman named Ashtyn, apparently shows her changing the price of a Forever Pals steel pet bowl, which originally cost $5.75.
However, in the clip, Ashtyn raised the price to $6, before lowering it to the original price of $5.75 and putting it on sale.
The video, posted by Ashtyn, shows her changing the price of a Forever Pals steel bowl, which was originally priced at $5.75, by increasing it to $6 before finally putting it on sale for the original price of $5.75.
Responding to the video, one user expressed outrage in the comments, saying: “This should actually be illegal.”
They added: “I always look and if it’s not a discount and I don’t need it, I don’t buy it. My local store does this A LOT.”
Another said that because the trick is used so often, it has become the reason shoppers have stopped “believing in sales” and why “Black Friday has been dead for years.”
The alleged trick, known as fictitious or misleading trademarks or false pricing schemes, is largely unenforced except by those who have been the subject of class-action lawsuits.
According to Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, “unlawful, unfair, or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce are prohibited.”
The video posted by Ashtyn has garnered over 225,000 views.
Pictured: Dollar General store deals, which have been criticized by a TikTok user named Ashtyn
Dollar General has come under fire recently after the chain released a disappointing earnings report.
Dollar General has come under fire recently after the chain released a disappointing earnings report.
Shares of all three national dollar store chains have faltered over the past year, with Dollar General down 39 percent this month.
In its latest earnings report, Dollar General said the poorest Americans are running out of money at the end of the month, meaning they are having to cut back on even the most basic purchases.
David D’Arezzo, a former top executive at Dollar General and other retailers, told CNN that Dollar General made a mistake by trying to shift toward discretionary items, known as “non-consumables.”
In recent years, the chain has added items like decorations and candles to its shelves, rather than focusing on basic “consumable” products like food and cleaning supplies.
“They’re trying to get out of a failed non-consumables strategy, where they have a lot of inventory,” he said. “They didn’t realize that in tough times the consumer would be looking for consumables.”