Dollar General To Add 10,000 New Jobs And 1,000 New Stores In 2017

Dollar General Corp. said Friday it intends to create 10,000 new jobs in 2017, as part of its plan to open 1,000 new stores and two new distribution centers. The new jobs would increase its workforce by about 9% to over 130,000 employees, and would be the largest one-year increase in the discount retailer's 78-year history. "These new jobs reflect the organization's commitment to seize growth opportunities and further deliver Dollar General's value proposition of everyday low prices on quality merchandise to customers in 1,000 new locations in 2017," said Chief Executive Todd Vasos. The stock, which is still inactive in premarket trade, has lost 2.1% over the past 12 months, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has gained 6.4% and the S&P 500 has run up 19.3%.