LYMAN — Discount retailer Dollar General opened last weekend, becoming the town’s largest retailer.

The grand opening will take place Aug. 22 at 8 a.m. There will be free prizes and special deals.

The company is growing fast in the state. Dollar General Corporation Spokesman James Menes said the Lyman store is the 17th in Maine. The company opened its first store in Maine early this year.

Code Enforcement Officer Patti McKenna said the Dollar General store is 9,100 square feet. It is located on Route 111 at Jackson Corner.

Menes said meeting customers’ needs is the company’s top priority when choosing new store locations, and the company looks for places it can offer customers an easy and convenient shopping choice.

“Dollar General makes shopping simple,” said Menes. “Our stores are small by design and the average shopper can get in and out in 10 minutes.”

He said Dollar General aims not only to save shoppers time, but also to save them money by keeping costs low and focusing on providing essentials, such as laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, basic clothing and select foods.

Dollar General Corporation’s headquarters is located in Tennessee, and is over 75 years old. It currently has more than 12,000 stores in 43 states, according to a fact sheet on the company’s website.

The store earned more than $18.9 billion in sales in 2014 and the National Retail Foundation listed the store as number 24 in its list of 2015’s top 100 retailers.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].