Family Dollar Stores, Inc.

Matthews, NC United States

  (NYSE: FDO)

Company Description

Penny-pinching single moms are drawn to Family Dollar. The nation's #2 dollar store (behind Dollar General) targets women shopping for a family earning less than $40,000 a year. It operates more than 7,100 stores across 45 states and Washington, DC. Consumables (food, health and beauty aids, and household items) account for two-thirds of sales; stores also sell apparel, shoes, and linens. Family Dollar runs small neighborhood stores near its low- and middle-income customers in rural and urban areas. Most merchandise costs less than $10. Family Dollar was founded in 1959 by the father of CEO Howard Levine. In 2011 it rejected an unsolicited takeover bid from Trian Fund Management, run by investor Nelson Peltz.