We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (2024)

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Retail

Jessica Tyler

2018-09-11T14:36:00Z

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (1)

Five Belowis a discount-store chain that sells everything from books to clothes for under $5.
Five Below is one of severaldollar stores that have been doing well lately, like competitors Dollar General and Dollar General. In the second quarter of 2018, Five Below's comparable sales increased by 2.7%.
It has opened 67 new stores so far in 2018. It plans to open an additional 50 stores this quarter, CEO Joel Anderson said in an earnings call last week.

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Five Below is thriving.

Five Below, a discount-store chain that sells everything from school supplies to clothes to candy for under $5, is one of several chains that have recently found success selling extremely low-priced products.From 2010 to 2015, dollar-store salesgrewfrom $30.4 billion to $45.3 billion in the United States. Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Family Dollarall announced plans toopen hundreds of storesthis year, with Dollar General planning to open900 more locationsin the US in 2018.

Five Below announced its own plans to grow earlier this year. It has opened 67 new stores so far in 2018 and plans to open another 50 this quarter in addition to the 625 stores it already operates, CEO Joel Anderson said in an earnings call last week. One of those stores will be a flagship location on New York's Fifth Avenue, one of the most expensive shopping destinations in the US, CNBC reported.

Five Below is one of the country's fastest-growing retailers, with 22.7% net sales growth year-over-year, according to thecompany's most recent earnings release. In the second quarter of 2018, Five Below's comparable sales grew by 2.7%.

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One of the biggest draws of Five Below is that everything at the store truly costs under $5. You can find beach chairs, clothes, books, electronics, and school supplies for well below the price of similar products at other retailers.

We recently visited a location of the discount chain in Queens, New York. This is what we found:

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I went to a Five Below store in Queens, New York.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (2)

There was a sale sign advertising 50% off certain products, even though everything was already $5 or less.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (3)

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The store was bright and spacious. Loud pop music was blasting over the speakers, and there were a lot of families shopping in the store.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (4)

There were also wheelbarrows filled with $5 school supplies like pens and pencils, glue sticks, and highlighters. The same products typically cost $8-10 at stores like Staples or Target.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (5)

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The store also sold backpacks ...

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (6)

... notebooks and binders ...

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (7)

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... and electronics like headphones and phone chargers. There were a lot of recognizable name brands like Maxwell.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (8)

There was a wall of $5 clothes and shoes, selling simple styles like black boots, plain tank tops, and pajamas that you might also find at a store like Target. The styles were all very basic, and the quality was better than you'd expect on a $5 pair of shoes.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (9)

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There were a ton of makeup and beauty products.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (10)

It carried a lot of drugstore brands and had a huge selection of cleansers, makeup removers, soaps, and bath products, in addition to makeup and nail polish.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (11)

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There were books for $5 or less in the center of the store, including children's books, activity books, and novels by authors like Stephen King. Behind the books were products like phone cases, DVDs, USB cables, and headphones, typically priced between $3 and $35.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (12)

It had room decor like Himalayan salt lamps, essential oil diffusers, and zen gardens, which can typically cost $20 or more at other stores.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (13)

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The store had an entire wall of storage bins, pillows, blankets, and rugs. The quality was surprisingly great for how cheap it all was.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (14)

There was a small crafts section selling products like Play-Doh and acrylic paint for $1, and it was all 50% off. The Nickelodeon Slime kit sold for $1 at Five Below costs $6 at a competing stores like Michaels.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (15)

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The back of the store was packed with toys and games ...

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (16)

... fitness equipment ...

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (17)

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... and sporting goods. There were a bunch of kids playing soccer in the store, and nobody seemed to mind.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (18)

The front of the store was basically a small candy shop ...

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (19)

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... and there were a lot of people in line.

We visited Five Below, the discount-store chain that's growing across America. Here's what it's like to shop there. (20)

Overall, I was impressed with Five Below — the prices were really all under $5, the quality was decent, and there was a big variety of products. It was also very bright and clean, and it was packed with shoppers in the middle of the day.