Dollar General enters Long Island market with three locations

Dollar General, one of the nation’s 20 largest retailers by sales, has set up shop on Long Island. The discount chain has opened three new stores, in Lindenhurst, Patchogue and Shirley.

The Lindenhurst and Patchogue locations opened in October, while the Shirley store began operations earlier this month, according to a company spokesman.

The Shirley location, located on William Floyd Parkway in a former Family Dollar store, will celebrate its grand opening Saturday at 8 a.m., with $10 Dollar General gift cards for the first 50 shoppers, and tote bags and product samples to the first 200 shoppers, the spokesman said.

The Patchogue store on South Ocean Avenue, also located in a former Family Dollar location, is expected to hold a similar opening celebration in the coming weeks.

Dollar General, based in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, was ranked 20th in sales among U.S. retailers in 2016 by the National Retail Federation’s Stores magazine, with more than $21 billion in sales. There are more than 14,000 Dollar General locations nationwide.

It was the largest national retailer without a Long Island presence, according to the NRF’s list.

Dollar General was one of nine companies profiled in Newsday’s “Why popular chains have avoided Long Island” article that ran earlier this year.