Dollar Tree Trees

A collection of images of trees at Dollar Tree store locations across the United States.

2022-

Dollar Tree Trees project statement

There used to be a grocery store called the Fair Share at the end of my block. It was family-owned and aptly named. Limes were often ten for a dollar, and a  bunch of cilantro was fifty cents. While my family bought the bulk of our groceries from a larger grocery store, it felt like we were at the Fair Share multiple times per week for a missing ingredient or last minute something. Orange juice, ice cream, frozen pizza, canned beans, toilet paper. The quality of their produce was hit and miss, and we learned to check expiration dates on packages, but having a grocery store at the end of the block was amazing. We appreciated it, but not nearly enough in retrospect.

Fast forward a few years and the Fair Share is now a Dollar Tree. Like the more than 8,000 Dollar Tree stores across the United States, it sells some food, but it’s all shelf stable and highly processed. No cilantro, no limes. It’s not the fault of the Dollar Tree that the Fair Share went out of business (the owners said the store wasn’t making money), but it’s hard not to feel bitter about the swap. I often wish I could go back and spend more of our family’s weekly grocery budget at the Fair Share, though I know it would have taken more than that to keep it in business.