Growing number of affluent consumers are shopping at discount stores. Here's why.

Not only low-income shoppers are hunting for deals these days. Better off consumers are also flocking to discount stores to save a few bucks.

Since 2021, budget retailers have seen a large influx of more affluent shoppers, according to data from GlobalData Retail. This year, nearly 28% of high-income people have shopped at discount chains Aldi, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Five Below, Family Dollar, Lidl, Ollie's, PopShelf or Walmart, up from around 20% four years ago, the research and consulting firm found.

A key catalyst for the shift is one that has plagued Americans up and down the income ladder in recent years, experts told CBS MoneyWatch: inflation.

Emerging from the pandemic, many middle- and even upper-income consumers had extra savings after receiving federal stimulus checks an