How to Penny Shop at Dollar General!
Dollar General penny shopping is fun but can be so confusing! The experts who do it are totally into it but you have to know what you’re doing. What to look for and where to find it in the store. It also takes time to do the research and the in-store searching but once you get it down you can score BIG!
Keep In Mind!
Penny items don’t have a price tag saying, “I am only a penny!” You have to know how to decipher the tags and how the system works. No store is the same and the deals vary from store to store. What’s pennied out in one store can be totally different in another.
Breaking Code
Understanding how the Dollar General barcodes work is crucial. The barcode on a product will have a code underneath. It includes a combination of the following codes:
- SP – Spring
- SU – Summer
- FA – Fall
- WI – Winter
- 15 – 2015
- 16 – 2016
- 17 – 2017
So if you see pajamas, for example, that says SU16 that means summer 2016. If the code is close to the current time frame then it probably isn’t pennied out. If it says spring or summer for 2017, or a prior year, then it should have some type of a discount. This is the first place you look to see if you can score a penny item.
What The Symbols Mean
Now you need to know what the symbols mean. You have the following:
- Purple Dot
- Brown Dot
- Red Dot
- Pink Dot
- Pink Star
- Blue Dot
- Brown Diamond
- + others
The correct symbol combined with the correct code means a good chance of finding some penny deals. Specific items, such as Disney products, have their own codes. If you follow the sales at Dollar General it doesn’t take long to figure out what’s symbols are on sale.
Discounts begin at 10% – 25%. They then move on to 40%, 50%, 70%, 90%. Of course, this can vary per store. After they hit 90%, typically within 2 weeks, they will “penny out”. Tuesday mornings are when the discounts are often applied so that is the day you want to start looking.
Penny Items – What Are They?
Penny deals are not supposed to be in the store. They’re to be removed from the sales floor but sometimes things get overlooked. Dollar General’s policy on penny items is clear – they’re policy is to sell it to you if you find one but some stores will refuse. And in many cases if you find one and they let you buy it the cashier won’t you go back and grab the rest. So if you think something is a penny put them all in your basket.
Penny Shopping Tips
- IMPORTANT: DO NOT ASK EMPLOYEES ABOUT THE PENNY ITEMS! These are items that are NOT supposed to be on the shelf, an employees with NOT help you find them!
- Follow the penny deal posts from members in the Dollar General Group
- Always be polite. Don’t argue about any penny items.
- Load your cart with all you want if you think it’s a penny. They have to pull them once they know about them.
- Keep in mind, not every store gets the same discount at the same time.
- Don’t have them price check it. If it rings up for more than just ask them to remove and explain you thought it was on sale for less.
- Don’t mention penny sales!
- Be NEAT! Penny shoppers are known for trashing stores and this does not make for good relationships.
- Know what you are looking for when you go in. Have screenshots, a list etc.
- The internet in DG stores is terrible so don’t depend on it while shopping
Dollar General Penny Store Policy
When you know what the policy is you can handle problems calmly and efficiently. We’ve typed out the full policy below, click HERE to see a picture of it!
Monday-Identify and Remove PRP items from the Sales Floor:
- In preparation for completing the PRP Event, the specific product should be pulled from the sales floor and by close of business. Stage in the Receiving Room.
- The product will still ring at the register at the current clearance price until the following day.
All areas of the sales floor must be checked to ensure that ALLPRP items are pulled.
Tuesday-Product will Ring at the Register at ( 0.01 ) one cent
- The product will ring at a penny.
- If any additional PRP items are identified by the store team, immediately pull from the sales floor.
- If any penny item is identified by a customer, ALWAYS sell the product to the costumer at 1cent. If we fail to pull all of the penny product from the floor, it is never appropriate to deny the sale or argue with the customer.
- After taking care of the customer, locate any additional penny items and remove from the sales floor.
Wednesday-Begin the PRP
The PRP is live and should be processed by the deadline using the instructions provided in START.
So the best way to get in on the deals is to be able to read the tags, know what symbols are on clearance for the season (i.e. = gray dot – men’s boots) and then watch the clearance progression. Joining a group that focuses on penny deals can be a huge help. There are also subscription sites that will list what is happening each week in the penny world. Happy hunting!