Dollar General 2014 Annual Report Download - page 82

10-K
The following table reflects the seasonality of net sales, gross profit, and net income by quarter for
each of the quarters of our three most recent fiscal years. Each of the quarters reflected below were
comprised of 13 weeks.
(in millions) 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter
Year Ended January 30, 2015
Net sales .................... $4,522.1 $4,724.0 $4,724.4 $4,939.1
Gross profit ................. 1,357.7 1,455.6 1,423.7 1,565.4
Net income(a) ................ 222.4 251.3 236.3 355.4
Year Ended January 31, 2014
Net sales .................... $4,233.7 $4,394.7 $4,381.8 $4,493.9
Gross profit ................. 1,295.1 1,377.3 1,328.5 1,434.8
Net income(b) ................ 220.1 245.5 237.4 322.2
Year Ended February 1, 2013
Net sales .................... $3,901.2 $3,948.7 $3,964.6 $4,207.6
Gross profit ................. 1,228.3 1,263.2 1,226.1 1,367.8
Net income(c) ................ 213.4 214.1 207.7 317.4
(a) Includes expenses, net of income taxes, of $7.4 million and $1.3 million, respectively,
related to an attempted business acquisition in the third and fourth quarters of 2014.
(b) Includes expenses, net of income taxes, of $11.5 million related to the termination of
credit facilities in the first quarter of 2013.
(c) Includes expenses, net of income taxes, of $17.7 million related to the redemption of
long-term obligations in the second quarter of 2012.
Our Competition
We operate in the basic discount consumer goods market, which is highly competitive with respect
to price, store location, merchandise quality, assortment and presentation, in-stock consistency, and
customer service. We compete with discount stores and with many other retailers, including mass
merchandise, warehouse club, grocery, drug, convenience, variety and other specialty stores. These
other retail companies operate stores in many of the areas where we operate, and many of them
engage in extensive advertising and marketing efforts. Our direct competitors include Family Dollar,
Dollar Tree, Fred’s, 99 Cents Only and various local, independent operators, as well as Walmart, Target,
Kroger, Aldi, Walgreens, CVS, and Rite Aid, among others. Certain of our competitors have greater
financial, distribution, marketing and other resources than we do.
We differentiate ourselves from other forms of retailing by offering consistently low prices in a
convenient, small-store format. We believe that our prices are competitive due in part to our low cost
operating structure and the relatively limited assortment of products offered. Purchasing large volumes
of merchandise within our focused assortment in each merchandise category allows us to keep our
average costs low, contributing to our ability to offer competitive everyday low prices to our customers.
See ‘‘—Our Business Model’’ above for further discussion of our competitive situation.
Our Employees
As of February 27, 2015, we employed approximately 105,500 full-time and part-time employees,
including divisional and regional managers, district managers, store managers, other store personnel
and distribution center and administrative personnel. We have increasingly focused on recruiting,
training, motivating and retaining employees, and we believe that the quality, performance and morale
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