CEO makes honest admission as he reveals the major impact Trump’s tariffs will have on prices
A CEO of a discount store is the latest in a long line-up of businesspeople who are voicing concern over Donald Trump's aggressive tariffs.
American shoppers are already facing high costs at the supermarket shelves, which could be exacerbated by the president's ongoing 'trade war', several economists and industry leaders in retail and agriculture are warning.
CEO of Dollar General, Todd Vasos, has warned of a 'worsened' financial climate, aggravated by inflation, which has seen footfall into the store drop by one percent, according to its 2024 fourth-quarter earnings report.
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In the report, he said: "Many of our customers report they only have enough money for basic essentials, with some noting that they have had to sacrifice even on the necessities," as per The Daily Mail.
And 2025 isn't looking much better either as he said its 'core customers' continue to expect 'value and convenience more than ever' and are 'always strained'.
The boss of the multibillion-dollar company is also warning the POTUS' stringent tariffs imposed on imported goods will likely cause prices to rise on Dollar General products.
Earlier this month, President Trump rolled out taxes on goods from to China to 20 percent and inflicted 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods.
Economists are warning the average food shop could see American consumers pay an extra $830 to $1,072 per year on groceries as the US' top three trading partners supplied almost half (40 percent) of all goods entering the States last year.
Mexico accounted for two-thirds of all vegetables on US shelves in 2023 as well as nearly half of fruit and nut imports.
And Dollar General isn't the only one bracing for a price hike with grocery executives at Kroger and major retailers like Target saying customers will have to foot the bill of product costs.
The CEO said when Trump enforced tariffs during his first presidential term in 2018 and 2019, Dollar General increased prices and said it was 'well-positioned' to soften the blow this time around again.
"Given the already stressed financial condition of our core customer, we are closely monitoring these [tariffs] and any other potential economic headwinds, including any changes to government entitlement programs," Vasos said.
There are around 20,000 Dollar General stores across the US and 96 percent of the stores, as well as 45 locations under its pOpshelf brand, will be closing its doors for good due to financial pressures.
"While this is less than one percent of our overall store base, those stores, many of which are in urban locations, have become increasingly challenging to successfully operate," Vasos added.
Despite the closures and threat of becoming unaffordable, the company hopes to expand its customer base by growing its delivery service in up to 400 stores.
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