Dollar stores closures leave fewer options for communities

The Dollar Tree located in Socorro and the Family Dollar store in Magdalena have both recently shut down their operations, marking a significant change for their local communities.

“I knew three people actually that were told that they essentially didn’t have a job anymore right before Christmas. I know one of them was given the offer to commute to Belen to work at the store up there, but the person didn’t have a car, so it’s not a viable option,” Zach Holcomb said.

Holcomb a former Socorro Dollar Tree Manager is concerned that many of the Dollar Tree customers won’t be able to afford the other stores.

“What really upsets me about the impact that it’s going to have in Socorro is on the low-income folks and the fact that they bought so much of their food stuffs there,” Holcomb said, “For five bucks, you could actually make a meal that would feed a family of a couple of people. So I feel bad for all the low-income people that did a lot of their grocery shopping there because I don’t know what they’re going to.”

He said during his two years working, they had problems with shoplifting and insufficient staff hours to keep up the store.

“If you’ve ever been inside the store, there was always just stuff everywhere. We got a certain number of hours each week from our corporate office that we were allowed to use, and with those number of hours at the end of the week, we consistently always had more freight than we had time and people to put things on shelves,” Holcomb said.

He said the shoplifting was also a significant problem, and it was corporate policy that they weren’t allowed to confront anyone who was shoplifting.

“We weren’t allowed to ask them not to do it. We weren’t allowed to ask for receipts when they were leaving the door like they do at Walmart now, so there was no mechanism in place for us to stop the shoplifting,” Holcomb said.

Holcomb hopes that people in the community know there are resources for those experiencing food insecurity, such as the Socorro Store House and Puerto Seguro.

Magdalena Family Dollar

John Lee, Magdalena Chamber of Commerce president, remembers when Magdalena had a laundromat, grocery store, two feed stores, a hardware store and two cafes. He said having another vacant building doesn’t do the village any favors.

“The reduction of choices for the consumer in general discourages many people nowadays from living in rural areas and limits things for those of us who are already here,” Lee said.

Lee said he appreciated the staff at the Family Dollar and that it was organized and clean. With scarce employment opportunities in the area, the loss of jobs, especially entry-level positions, it’s a hard loss for the village.

And its closure won’t just impact Magdalena residents but also surrounding residents in Alamo, Datil, Pie Town and Quemado. He said often people travel far just for a gallon of milk, and if the other dollar store is out, then there are no other options.

Lee said that during the tourist season, the Family Dollar was a popular stop for travelers passing through the area. For those heading West, it was the last store for many miles.

“With less choices tourist have, it’s one less reason for them to stop,” Lee said.

He noted that the loss of tax revenue to the village due to one less business generating gross receipts tax also has a negative impact.

Magdalena’s Family Dollar was built in 2010 and was listed for sale last summer with an asking price of $795,890. Socorro’s Dollar Tree, constructed in 2014, was put on the market last September for $900,000.

On July 6, 2015, Dollar Tree acquired Family Dollar for $8.5 billion. Following the acquisition, they recognized the opening of their 15,000th store. However, last year, it was announced they would be closing 600 stores in the first half of 2024. News reports suggest that Dollar Tree has faced challenges since acquiring Family Dollar.

Dollar Tree Corporation did not respond to requests for comment on the store closures.