Dollar stores among the new retail powerhouses

No longer dusty, out-of-the-way haunts, dollar stores have grown into a $56 billion industry, a 43 percent increase since 1998, according to the industry research firm IBISWorld.

One of the few niches of retail expanding in a dim economy, the dollar store industry's four top players -- three of which are Fortune 500 companies -- are no longer snubbed by developers, landlords, investors and consumers because of their perceived working-class customer.. . . more