"By the end of this year, we're going to open 17 to 18 stores," David Schlessinger, co-founder and chairman of Five Below, tells GlobeSt.com. "Next year, we're going to open 30 stores, and our goal is to open more than 100 over the next three years." Currently the company has 80 stores in seven Northeastern and mid-Atlantic states.

The fact that Five Below is looking to expand at a time when several other retail chains have scaled back plans to open new units might seem like a function of the chain's pricing model—all merchandise lists $5 or less. However, LLR partner Howard Ross tells GlobeSt.com, "I thought their strategy was timely when it started" in 2002. "It's even more compelling in this kind of economic environment."

Ross continues, "I don't know how much of the current success is due to the current economy vs. the company just hitting its stride and emerging as a strong retail concept. I think it's a combination of both. Once you capture the mindshare and a particular geography through marketing and density of stores, you start establishing in people's minds that Five Below does exist in their neighborhoods."