Amazon tends towards larger quantities, which is what people have trouble affording. I am happy to buy in bulk for things that I use -- as an example I take Zyrtec every day, and buy a 365-count container every year for $15. Dollar stores aren't competing with that, they're for people that can only afford $1 right now, and so they end up with a 14 count container for that. Those people will pay $26 for a year supply, but the important part is that they have $14 right now and are still free of allergies.

That is the problem that people have with dollar stores. They have a cheaper cost of entry, but are more expensive overall. Those of us that aren't living paycheck to paycheck have the liberty of buying things a year in advance to get a better price, and Amazon is great for us. But most of the country isn't doing quite so well.

Pretty sure the bile in these comments would be doubled if the story was about Amazon displacing local stores.