Dollar Tree’s CEO explains the reasons for the price hike, and customers say the extra cents are a “killer.”

A PRICE hike at Dollar Tree has angered customers over the hike, calling it a “killer.”

Meanwhile, Dollar Tree’s chief executive officer explained the reason for the company’s price increase.

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The discounter raised its prices to $1.25 after sticking with $1 for 35 years.

Now it’s developing a new pricing strategy, leading its fans to oppose Dollar Tree and ultimately question the decision.

Like many companies that have had to make changes to adjust to record-high inflation, Dollar Tree has shifted with the economy and has already made its higher prices available online.

At the more than 5,000 stores the company is launching just this week, items cost $1.25, $3, and $5, and the other stores will be rebuilt or rebranded by the end of 2024.

Dollar Tree first tested the 2021 price increase, and while the change raised the eyebrows of the business’ biggest fans, it appeared to be paying off years later.

Dollar Tree’s in-store sales increased 8.6 percent in the third fiscal quarter of 2022 as the company continues to hike prices to reflect high inflation in the economy.

The retailer said raising its prices also helps the store offer shoppers higher quality goods.

“Our move to the $1.25 price point has allowed our traders to add significant value,” Dollar Tree chief executive officer Michael Witynski said on a call in November 2022, per CNN.

DOLLAR TREE FANS REACT

Some may still shop at the popular discounter, but many shoppers aren’t happy with the new prices, while others decide that online shopping is the better bargain.

“The Dollar Tree, which costs $1.25, is no longer attractive,” said one Twitter user.

They continued, “I can buy this stuff on Amazon at this point.”

“Inflation has made everything at Dollar Tree $1.25. I get most of my food there and let me tell you the extra $0.25 is killer,” shared another on the app.

“I spend there as much as I do at Walmart now. And most frozen stuff is now between $3 and $5. There is no sane way to be poor. They want us to die,” they added.

“I [should have] took the state of the economy really seriously when Dollar Tree started charging $1.25,” said another Twitter user.

“I knew the world was ending when they flipped the dollar tree to $1.25. This neighborhood makes such a difference, along with the tax on it… No,” interjected one woman.

One person even said that “a dollar tree growing into a $1.25 tree is the biggest warning sign of inflation.”

“Life went downhill when the dollar tree was changed to 1.25 and now got a $5 section,” added one user.

“Turning a dollar tree into a $1.25 tree is one of the greatest crimes of the 21st century,” said another user.

Someone else mentioned that “Dollar Tree needed to update their store branding because you can imagine being the first employee to say to a customer, ‘Yeah, actually it’s $1.25 now?'”

ITEM PRICED AT $1.25

• cake mixes
• Brownie mix
• jello
• Flour
• baking powder
• candle lighters
• notebooks
• Dry erase markers
• Elmer’s Glue
• pasta noodles
• Kraft Mac and Cheese
• Ramen bowls
• canned beans

ITEM PRICED AT $3

• Deep reservoirs
• soap dispenser
• Spray Nine Heavy Duty Cleaner 22 oz
• Various Easter decorations
• Square glass mosaic tiles
• Crafters square ceramic planters 5×5
• Make 10″ x 7.8″ slate wooden hanging signs
• Clear plastic storage containers with clip-lock lids
• Ty-D-Bol Blue Toilet Bowl Cleaning Tablets Pack of Five
• Watercolor cakes with brushes, 51 pcs
• Plywood Table Easel 9″ x 15″.
• Brush 10 pcs

ITEM PRICED AT $5

• Gray cotton bath towels
• cupcake pan
• Pans
• Cuddly drying towels 120 pieces
• Armor Hammer detergent
• Drinking cup made of stainless steel
• Metal table stool
• Harmony 12-count toilet paper
• Mini play-doh sets
• 12 inch plastic planters
• 12-count swiffer pads
• LED light set
• Motion activated toilet light

Although Dollar Tree has many affordable products and has even said it offers higher quality items, not all are worth buying, according to a mom who shops there monthly.

The Dollar Tree superfan shared nine Dollar Tree items to avoid for cost or quality reasons.

The Sun has compiled a roundup of which products to avoid next time you’re in a dollar tree, and where you can score the same items at even lower prices.