when you got $5 and need soap and a toothbrush and cat food and paper towels today; you may not be in a position to be more frugal.
The people that shop there often realize that its more expensive; but either they can't swing larger portions sizes for whatever reasons, or (more often in my rural area); the DG is closer than a real store and they don't care to drive all the way into town. 5 minute trip vs 15min.
“don’t care to” often hints at a bigger picture, a bigger problem, or a series of small ones… which becomes a larger one. e.g. cannot afford to, be it economically, mentally, physically, emotionally, socially, etc. “don’t care to” is short-hand for multitudes of reasons.
small towns are small, and the spaces between can be vast. the cost of living is lower for shelter, usually, but higher for whatever else you can actually get.
unfortunately there are times where DG is the only store in a manageable distance - which makes it much more real than the “real” stores that cannot or will not build a location close enough to be worthwhile. similar to gas stations.
and yes, the $3 bottle of wine is barely wine, and barely drinkable, assuming you were hoping to enjoy it. but it is $3, and it works as well as the ritzy stuff. if not better. more affordable, and you won’t waste time savoring it.
for any thinking it would be better to just… get out of that hole, you likely haven’t seen beyond the rim, and probably think there is a bottom.
if you have recently been in rural parts of the us of america, you would already know that shopping elsewhere is at times, even in current year, at best a convenience, at worst the only option there. some even carry produce and fresh meat. when money is tight, or time, you may be able to walk to a dollar general, but not to the nearest grocery store.
this is not praise for dollar general, there are plenty of issues. but you have missed or omitted important details, as to why dollar general may know something you do not.
In a lot of cases, it is "creative packaging". The package may look similar to what you see elsewhere but the contents are actually less.
In others, the actual cost per unit at "discount stores" is often higher.