Dollar Stores

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Waterfall

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I wasn't sure where I should post this, so I decided on "Religion and Faith" because of the possible (religious?)ethics involved with our decisions in promoting consumerism.

The other day I went into my favourite dollar store, Dollarama, to purchase some paint brushes. They were $2.00 as opposed to almost $10.00 elsewhere. Looking around I could see many items from socks, underwear, food, plastic ware, cards, toys, trinkets, etc.... and I found myself wondering, "how can anyone sell these things so cheap, and still pay whoever makes them"? Where are they made? All the plastic, and I thought about the oceans and how it is overloaded with plastic. Is it any different than Walmart or Target? These places employ people and contribute to the economic health of our nation but do they also contribute to our blindness in that we may also be contributing to someone elses unfortunate circumstances as well as our own, not to mention the earth itself?

Do you shop in Dollar stores? Does it matter overall?
 
Yes - I do some shopping in dollar stores. Usually at Dollarama in Cloverdale Mall. The vast majority of the stuff is made in China. That keeps the price of manufacturing it down.
 
Are the conditions of the factories in China acceptable to you for your purchases? Realize I shop in these places too, but I don't really know what I'm promoting when buying.
 
Waterfall said:
I wasn't sure where I should post this, so I decided on "Religion and Faith" because of the possible (religious?)ethics involved with our decisions in promoting consumerism.

The other day I went into my favourite dollar store, Dollarama, to purchase some paint brushes. They were $2.00 as opposed to almost $10.00 elsewhere. Looking around I could see many items from socks, underwear, food, plastic ware, cards, toys, trinkets, etc.... and I found myself wondering, "how can anyone sell these things so cheap, and still pay whoever makes them"? Where are they made? All the plastic, and I thought about the oceans and how it is overloaded with plastic. Is it any different than Walmart or Target? These places employ people and contribute to the economic health of our nation but do they also contribute to our blindness in that we may also be contributing to someone elses unfortunate circumstances as well as our own, not to mention the earth itself?

Do you shop in Dollar stores? Does it matter overall?
Click to expand...
I do sometimes. I was there twice to buy Christmas wrapping. I don't think I've been there since December. My husband came home with $1 or $1.50 dish soap from there instead of the grocery store in the same mall - so I guess that counts. I don't like shopping there but money is tight sometimes. I had a huge moral dilemma over it a couple of years ago. Well, not huge...but I was not happy and had the same questions as you waterfall - and disappointed at the choices poor people are stuck with- the poor people being the staff who make all the junk and people who have no choice but to buy it.
 
I don't use them much. The odd card or small bit of stuff.

However, labour conditions in China affect all Chinese made goods. One of the worst offenders was Foxconn, which makes $500+ smartphones not dollar store stuff. China is starting to crack down on the "sweatshop" economy but there are many factors driving it that will be hard for them to overcome.

Rural people moving to cities and desperate for work will take anything that comes.

Factory owners buy off inspectors and local officials.

Western companies contracting at the lowest possible level to expand their profit margins.

China is working the first two between trying to keep more rural people at home through development programs outside the major centres and cracking down hard on corruption.

The third one is our responsibility and it isn't just about not buying sweatshop-made goods. Those who own shares in the companies need to step up and learn to live with smaller dividends in return for fairer contracting practices.
 
I was surprised to learn that Dollarama is a strong competitor to Walmart, profits are huge.

Are we willing to pay more and buy less? One could probably go into Value Village or a Thrift Store and find the same things.
 
Mendalla said:
The third one is our responsibility and it isn't just about not buying sweatshop-made goods. Those who own shares in the companies need to step up and learn to live with smaller dividends in return for fairer contracting practices.
Click to expand...

How are we supposed to know where something comes from? I wonder if we did, would we still buy it?
 
Waterfall said:
I was surprised to learn that Dollarama is a strong competitor to Walmart, profits are huge.

Are we willing to pay more and buy less? One could probably go into Value Village or a Thrift Store and find the same things.
Click to expand...
Not dish soap (which worked fine btw - husband bought it and so we used it) or candy or wrapping paper. They even sell some name brand food in our Dollorama. Dry goods and cans.
 
Waterfall said:
How are we supposed to know where something comes from? I wonder if we did, would we still buy it?
Click to expand...

Usually, it says on the label "Made in xx". The problem is that "Made in China" does not automatically mean sweatshop. Furthermore, if you boycott China, then production will just shift to India, or Bangladesh, or Latin America. Buying North American would solve the problem except a lot of stuff just isn't made here anymore save big ticket stuff like cars and some higher-priced clothing. We need to accept higher prices and lower profit margins regardless of where the product comes from or we'll just be shifting production from sweatshop to sweatshop.
 
Kimmio said:
Not dish soap (which worked fine btw - husband bought it and so we used it) or candy or wrapping paper. They even sell some name brand food in our Dollorama. Dry goods and cans.
Click to expand...

I know and even if you go in for that one thing, the temptation to buy more is what stores count on.
 
Mendalla said:
Usually, it says on the label "Made in xx". The problem is that "Made in China" does not automatically mean sweatshop. Furthermore, if you boycott China, then production will just shift to India, or Bangladesh, or Latin America. Buying North American would solve the problem except a lot of stuff just isn't made here anymore save big ticket stuff like cars and some higher-priced clothing. We need to accept higher prices and lower profit margins regardless of where the product comes from or we'll just be shifting production from sweatshop to sweatshop.
Click to expand...

And part of my own personal "dilemma" is that I like a deal. The paint brushes I bought were every bit as good as the other more expensive ones.....Honestly, I would have to make a crucial and conscious mind shift to do without or pay more.

And then of course one hears the argument that the "third world" would rather have low pay than no pay.
 
Yup, and the lack of disclosure doesn't help, but then who's going to label something, "Made In a Sweatshop"?
 
Kimmio said:
Sometimes you pay more for the same quality but what you're buying is still made in a sweatshop.
Click to expand...

Which is where getting investors to accept lower margins comes in. When you pay higher price for something that still comes from a sweatshop, you are giving more to the retailer and the distributor, not to the sweatshop. Ie. the retailer and distributor (or just the retailer in cases like Walmart which runs its own distribution system) have increased their gross margin by charging much more than they paid.
 
We use to order palms for Palm Sunday at a Catholic Christian store near the church.
We had done it for several years.
The last time I asked if the workers got a fair wage.
They were offended, I think.
"Of Course" was the answer.
The young teller didn't know what I was talking about;

Was it a legitimate question?
 
I love shopping at dollar stores. I think the bigger moral/ethical issue with them is that in addition to the issue with the cheap stuff that you're going to experience at most other stores, counterfeit stuff is going to be an issue. This can be a safety issue.
I am careful about what I buy from dollarstores duue to this. No food storage, most items you ingest, batteries for major electronics, etc.

I usually buy gift bags, tissue paper, and tins for gifts. Some cleaning supplies as well.

I bought a dry swiffer like thing in the last year (lysol brand though). I doubt it was counterfeit, the quality seemed to be the same, the problem was the packaging - no french. I assume a mistake was made and these ones went to the dollarstores.

Those I things I would have bought from other stores if I didn't get them from a dollarstore, and I don't see where not shopping at a dollarstore would have made a difference.
 
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