Something unusual is happening at Dollar Tree: The discount retailer said this week that of the 3 million new households that shopped its stores in the third quarter, approximately 60% of those new customers came from households earning more than $100,000 a year.

The trend underscores a deepening split in the American economy. While cumulative inflation has pushed prices up roughly 25% since 2020, wage growth has not kept pace for most households, leaving consumers across the income spectrum hunting for deals.

“Higher income households are trading into Dollar Tree, lower-income households are depending on us more than ever,” Dollar Tree CEO Michael Creedon Jr. told analysts on Wednesday. The Virginia-based chain, where 85% of sales during the quarter were priced at $2 or less, reported s

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