99 Cents Only Stores: All Stores Closing! | Retail Archaeology 

It's a real shame, they're community institutions and lifelines in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Their fresh produce selection was unparalleled and a godsend in such situations where it would otherwise be a food desert. The changeover in ownership from family ownership to private equity sucked the soul out of this enterprise.

99 cents only stores helped me survive through college in the late 90s/early 2000s. RIP 😢

I miss the old world when retail was thriving and social media didn't exist.

99 cent only got me through a rough patch in my life when I saw my income cut in half overnight. Over a span of decade, I was able to problem solve my way out of that situation and change careers in the process. I now make more money than ever have and alot of it wouldn't have been possible without 99 cent only allowing me to stay within a strict budget. I'll definitely miss this store that allowed me to shop like a millionaire even though I were near broke. Fortunately I'm near several existing locations in California should it's revival be successful.

Honestly this didn't surprise me when i heard this was happening. Honestly leveraged buyouts should be illegal but unfortunately it won't happen in this country.

I used to work at one of these stores, interestingly enough, it was just before the buyout, so I watched as they rolled in the higher priced items. (It was not fun dealing with all the angry customers over that.) I always thought they were far superior compared to Family Dollar/Dollar Gen. The “deals” there were an udder joke compared to the smokin deals I often found at 99. We would get overstock/old stock of name brand items, or food items close to the date, which is why they had so much great stuff for cheap. There were even times we would get stock from other companies that went under like Rite Aid or clearance items from Walmart. It was really cool to see what sort of surprises would come in from the wear house. We also had a Family Dollar across the street and our store actually ran them out of business. Lol. After I left there, and later started living on my own, these stores were a godsend when I was on a limited budget. I have alot of fond memories of the place, and I really feel for those who are on limited budgets that rely on these stores (or have no other grocery stores available at all). 99, you will be missed. F*** leverage buyouts!

99 cents store were the goat. When the 2008 - 2009 recession hit, my mom would go to these store just to save money. back in the day you were able to buy weeks worth of snacks, canned food, and drinks for around $20; and that was before they had fresh grocery's in their stores.

Your opening jingle had me looking around my room for the Super Nintendo I haven't had in 25 years.

i am so sad. as a young person living on my own, this place helped me so much with food and decor and just things to make me happy. now that I am a teacher this helped me big time.

This place fed me when I first moved out on my own.

I used to go to 99 cent stores a lot in the valley especially for birthday party supplies. Sad to see they’re going away 😢

Back in the 80's when the store started, 99 cents actually was a decent amount and could buy good stuff.

It hurts to see the 99 stores close. All the people who were and still going through tough times relied heavily and were able to afford something on a budget. It really is a hard hit on everyone.

I grew up with the 99 for a long time with my family and it breaks my soul too see this place go

Leveraged buyouts are the retail equivalent of a reverse mortgage.

Such a huge, huge shame!! These were the stores that made my money go so so far!! I felt extremely rich! I could buy anything and AFFORD it!! All their locations had very clean, even modern looking stores! You were never embarrassed to be seen in one. I am sure that they were a life-line to many people and their families. Their closure is going to hurt millions of poor and even middle-class people. Just goes to show what a difference, four years can make!

If they DO re-open, it'll be the 9.99 stores.

I dislike seeing any retailers having to close. Growing up in the 60's and 70's my parents took me to a mall and separate stores like Kmart and Sears. All are gone now. It makes me sad that no little kid will walk into the local Sears and be greeted with the smell of buttered popcorn. Yes, our Sears had that.

I appreciate this clear-eyed analysis. It’s interesting how much of what we do is affected by machinations from way above the street. Especially in terms of hiding or manipulating debt.

Definitely reminded me of late 80's grocery stores. Like my childhood local M System grocery.

A leveraged buyout also killed HILLS/AMES & Big Bear department stores.

Honestly leveraged buyouts should be considered a crime. So many folks’ livelihoods get wiped out because some execs want to crash companies into the ground to make a few more dollars from the wreckage

We have a couple of these stores in my little corner of Texas. We also have Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, Dollar General, Big Lots, and others. So the competition out here is pretty fierce. Fun Fact: Thrifty Ice Cream is probably the last vestige of the Thrifty Drugs Drug store chain that was prominent in California. Drug Stores were kind of the forerunners to the modern "Dollar Stores" by way of the old Five & Dime type stores from decades past.

When I worked at Fry’s Food stores in the late 80s and early 90s. To get the balloons off of the ceiling, we had a long pool pole, and we would wrap the end of it with tape, then just poke at the balloon and it would stick👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 Great video! Steve.

if you were ever poor this place was a staple. I don't think I would've survived growing up if this place didnt exist, and even the small toys and bootleg dvds gave me a lot of memories...

It really is sad that this place is going, because this place always has unique food items that other places don’t carry.

I am sad to see 99cent stores go. I stopped shopping there when they started carrying more pricey items tho. I always went as a child with my grandma because we didn't have a lot of money, but at least there we could get tons of stuff for cheap.

“The sun never sets on these deals.” lol 😅💀 4:31

The game of Monopoly game goes on forever, it just morphs into another beast.

I grew up in San Diego county and my sister, my dad, and I used to love going here. This one hurts.

I love how they have a "Fresh Baked" sign over the liquor.....I mean if you drink enough on a hot day you'll certainly get baked...LOL great vid as always! ♥

Dollar General has an upscale version called "DG market" which has more food and fresh produce offered. About 1 out of every 10 DGs in the midwest are turning into DG Markets. The Dollar General that had been in my town for the past 40 years upgraded itself to a DGM a couple years ago, and a DGM was built new in one of the Farm Towns 20min away last year.

I agree private equity firms should not be allowed to buy retailers and putting them in allot of debt

This is such a shame! as a doctor, I have had to rely on these stores to barely get by with my rent and insurance payments. Very few places offer the same value.

Here in Canada, there is a very similar chain called Giant Tiger. This is a general discount store with a surprisingly decent selection of fresh food -- vegetables, dairy, and meat. Unlike many other discount retailers, the products are (mostly) from recognizable national brands, just cheaper. Historically, the stores tend to locate in less affluent neighbourhoods (usually in spaces vacated by other retailers), but recent expansions have been into more upscale/suburban areas. I assume that the business is doing well.

I went to the one near me a couple days ago and nearly everything is gone. I'm going to miss it. They always had bags of cheap fresh mint that I used for recipes, as well as inexpensive bread!

There’s been one of these stores right outside of my neighborhood forever. I’ve lived in the same town for 41 years, which is my entire life and I’ve never been in it when I read this the other day I wanted to go check it out then I completely forgot until I saw your video just marked it on my list for things to do this week thanks great upload.

My husband on the closeout: "I mean, what are they doing? 98 cents?" 🤣😭

I never shopped at dollar stores until moving back to California during the pandemic. Every time I looked inside one at other places I lived they always looked incredibly cramped and filled with Chinese junk. Now I regularly go to Dollar Tree and Dollar General for snacks, I've also been going to Big Lots more since they often have better prices on some things. Grocery store prices have gotten insane, my closest store wants $6.49 for a regular sized box of Cheez-Its.

I drove by fiesta mall the other day and seeing it demolished reminded me that I’ve been watching your channel that long haha ,since you uploaded the tour video of fiesta all those years ago

From experience of working throughout the closing of our store, the first week was horrible, everyone in town came in, the following week things slowed down until we announced our final day at the end of April, everyone came in the last weekend

Mesa, Arizonan turned Los Angeles, Californian here. The 99 cent store has been a staple here for me for so long. They have recognizable brands at a good price, cat food for my feral I feed outside, and a good selection of birthday and celebratory decor at such a good price. Especially for something you're gonna use once, then throw away. It's such a huge loss for all of us. Especially my low income lube tech at work, he's had some rough times, getting back on his feet, and that's his everything store. Especially the one by our work which also has a Goodwill next door where he buys clothes. I hope it can be saved or spared. For me, it's also a place to get some great snacks. 😢

It’s so sad to see them go. As a kid I loved going and being able to buy a toy for $1

Growing up, everything was 99 cents. I was embarrassed to go there as a kid, but the snacks and candy aisle and toy aisle was the best deals around. I'll always remember 99 cent 6 packs of Shasta soda and the 99 cent TVs they had for grand openings.

I loved the 99 cents stores. I was so crushed to hear that they are closing. I live inLas Vegas so I don’t hold out too much hope that they will re open like they will in California. I shop everywhere- Costco, Trader Joe’s, Wal Mart Neighborhood grocery Store, and Smith’s. I always took advantage of the fresh produce prices such as cauliflower, broccoli, English cucumbers and whatever else I could find. It was also a good resource for junk food such as popcorn and chips and candy. There was one store that I went to on a regular basis; I will miss some of the people who worked there since I had become friendly with them. They were nice hard working people who were always there.

I was too young to remember what it was like when kmart closed down, but it really does feel like that with these shutting down. I used to love going to the 99 cent store, but it hasnt been the same since they priced everything over 99 cent

Thank you for making this video. I have a lot of fond memories of the 99 cents store.

Thanks for letting everyone know about the liquidation sale. The wife and I went and found a bunch of pegboard hooks and seven purple shopping baskets along with some cans of tea and coffee. We’ve enjoyed your videos for a while and look forward to the coverage they provide of the retail industry. Someone needs to employ you as a secret shopper.

I work at a dollar tree. That place is a lawsuit waiting to happen if there is ever a fire. Every aisle is filled with boxes even at the end of the day.

One step closer to "You will own nothing and you will be happy."

I found out from the the news Thursday night April 5 that I was losing my job and our stores last day is Saturday... They handled this so poorly it's abuse, and we are getting no severance package. I've had an income and great coworkers for almost a decade and now we've got nothing in less than a month. They were no sales and we got the store closing sign a week ago. The higher-ups cam go straight to hell and I'm just stealing what I can before the last day.

Retail today would be alot healthier if leverage buyouts were banned

When me and some friends got our first apartment, we did a ton of our grocery shopping at a 99¢ store in East Mesa. (It was also between a Goodwill and Savers.) Sad to see em go

Is going to become a Dollar General at this point

The one by my work used to be a Payless Cashways. So I get to see a second handy store leave. The checker told me they don't even know when they're closing

I think it’s sad they’re closing. Especially, if it’s located in an area that is a food desert. I’ve only been to one in California (back in 2009) in Riverside (my mom’s God mother/aunt lived in Moreno Valley).

9:10 I feel the same way becaause of the way Toys 'R' Us got closed.

Why are dollar stores suffering? You’d think in this inflationary economy that they’d be the exact type of store that people would want to shop at.

The 99 cents only stores were doomed to failed for over a decade, these property managers have neglected these stores for several years. They just leverage buyout companies only for their real estate, they never care about the retail business. Also I haven’t seen Thrifty’s ice cream in decades, that was from a Thrifty’s drugstore from 1980s that closed down in my state!

I used to take my mother regularly to the 99 cent store. After she passed away, haven't been there since. They are needed. I hope they are bought out and brought back under a different name. It doesn't make sense to keep the 99 cents name, if most of the items are priced well over that.

By me in the Chicago area, Dollar General has opened a DGMarket in a former CVS. It has more food, although pricing isn't very competitive with Walmart and similar.

My local 99 Cents store closed and was bulldozed to build a super Target around 20 years ago, but to this day I still have my Agumon hand puppet bath toy that my mom let me buy. It closed when I was really young, so my memory of it was foggy. Feels wild seeing footage of what they look like today.

When I was a teen, I remember getting Hulk Hogan's album from one of these stores for $1. Terrible album, but I'll never forget it. Good times in like 1998

Thank You for the walkaround im saving this video for when i think of this store in the future i will be able to be there again and see the items that i liked 🛒 also if they dont save this store as they are attempting it will be like watching those Blockbuster movie stores

.99 is fun to go to I will always remember that! Just remind me the good old Sears !

This is super sad, this used to be the best dollar store in town. I live right by one and its been going downhill since the pandemic...

That's a shame. Liked this chain better than Dollar Tree/Dollar General. The stores in my area were cleaner.

Man, I used to go to 99 nearly all the time growing up. RIP

The previous city we lived in has a 99¢ store and I loved taking my kids there to pick out cheap coloring books and because it was only place in town I could get Faygo and Shasta soda, which i loved as a kid. Losing the 99 store is as sad as losing all the IGAs.

This was a good video. Thanks👍🏻😀 It’s sad when stores just keep closing.

Great channel, cool content. Always a treat!

I found that ever since the pandemic they just haven't been as competitive anymore and aren't able to keep the shelves stocked. I use to fill up a cart but now 2-3 items max for an entire trip!

Your walking through the aisles makes me remember the calm cleaning chemical smells throught most of those discount stores 🥰 kind of soothing

These leverage buyouts have killed too many good companies. I heard the Fry's on Indian School and Miller is closing up soon.

Excellent video, great coverage of the end of the 99 cents stores.

Growing up in SoCal I loved going to the 99 cent stores as a kid. Sad to hear they're all closing.

Long have I waited for this video

As always great video 👍

99 bottles of beer on the walll... 😮

Capcom SNES hardcore fanboy here, love your intro!!! 😂 The themes of my vids are Megaman X2 and X3 based.

Thanks for the great video. We dont have 99 cent stores here but just before Dollar Tree turned over to their 1.25 price model, I bought 80.00 worth of stuff. I rarely need to shop there now. I hope you do a vid about them.

I was born in ‘90. I felt giddy when you said PickNSave cuz growing up that’s the general store that my mom would go to.

I'm sad to see this store go. I moved from the Midwest to the West. I considered this store to be a goldmine of deals for shopping on a budget. It was the perfect place to buy groceries on a dime. When I saw the prices rise, I had concerns. It's sad to see it go.

There was one down the street from me, but barely anything was 99 cents. I could find most of the items same price or cheaper at the Target a few blocks away, or even Ralph's grocery store across the street. I'm not sad to see it go tbh. I hope they put something better in it's place that actually sells what it advertises.

Lots of fond memories as a kid going here with my mom.

Sad to see the 99 cent stores closing. I enjoyed them and I also agree with you on the leveraged buyouts!!

10:22 Oh, man! I better get in on that freshly baked wine before it sells out!

When I was living in Las Vegas in 2009, I used to go to the 99c store on Charleston. I loved it! But since I didn't have a car and had to rely on the bus or my legs, I rarely went!

The one near me just closed on the 19th, big sign saying 20% off, obviously that stuff went first. Everything else was not 20% off or 99 cents but it was flying off the shelves. End of an era, will you still have Dollar tree 🌲, but they say they're upping their prices in May again. 💵

The 99 cent store has been dead to me ever since they started selling things for over 99 cents. It defeated the purpose of the stores existence imo. I don't need another grocery store that sells things for a few pennies cheaper, although I sympathize for those that had it as their only grocery store.

I'm in the San Diego area and I absolutely am going to miss my 99 only store 😢 it helped me and my family a lot with groceries and household items and etc when I didn't have much money to spend so yeah it sucks losing that store

The worst thing about this leveraged buyout is that the 99 cents stores used to be debt free under the management of its founder. The leveraged buyout literally killed the company.

Gonna miss the 99cents stores, I went into my local one a few days after the announcement and it was barren AF. It felt like I was in some kind of liminal/surreal space. Sad to see it go, shopped there a lot as a kid and bought my snacks and cleaning supplies there frequently.

Ohhh the produce is super interesting because every remodeled Dollar General now has a fresh produce section!

Well now we know, a number of locations will become Dollar Tree including the one in my city. Every time I went to The 99, the food aisles were always the busiest. The store in my city was almost stripped clean right after the close out started. They had a number of named brands that were cheaper than what Walmart charged.

So here in Texas, I found 99 cent only stores built out in poorer communities (except for one). These communities became dependent on a catch all store like 99 cent only stores. That said, I've notes that some of these stores became kind of trashy, selling legit awful merchandise. I went into one amd they had a stack of answering machines clearly saying they were all broken.

That 2nd one used to be my local store, sad to see it go, having it in that double thrift store shopping center was great.

This store helped me so much during tough times and it's always packed here... a damn shame.

Seeing these dead 99 Cent stores reminds me of the last six months of the Kmart store in The Dalles, Oregon, which closed permanenty the end of February 2020 (this was the last Kmart left in the entire state of Oregon when it closed). You could go to that store on a Friday afternoon when every other store in town had full parking lots and be one of five customers there. It was sad that Sears bought up Kmart so that both would go down together creating a massive tax write-off for Sears Holding Co.

I could buy a few days worth of groceries at the 99. Along with everything else I needed. The store was always busy and I never gave it a thought that one day my favorite neighborhood 99 would be gone. Very Sad !