Choice Market’s New Electricity is Electric Vehicles

 

Choice Market is looking a customer ahead.  Brand messaging matters and Choice Market is looking for the next generation of C-store shoppers begins by listing the price of electricity and fuel on its outdoor digital signage and that is a good thing according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA base Foodservice Solutions®.

There can be no doubt that Choice Market is targeting electric vehicle (EV) consumers and giving a nod to the future of mobility through the digital signage of its convenience store in the Denver neighborhood of City Park. So, the retail site, located at 2200 East Colfax Ave., lists the price of electricity right below the price of gas so EV consumers know what they'll pay, reported The Drive.

Price matters and citing reports from PlugShare, charging prices normally hover at around 15 cents per kilowatt-hour. It's highly competitive for the area, with others nearby charging significantly more.

Choice Market Chief Operating Officer Ben Kipfer, stated, "It's a pretty good rate, honestly, for charging up at 15 cents,". "It's something different and we want to get people inside the four walls, obviously, as well."

According to Kipfer, typical users stop to charge for 30 to 50 minutes. It's then the aim of the convenience store to welcome those customers inside for a cup of coffee and a bite to eat. Now think about this, "People walk in here, they always say, 'This is the nicest gas station I've ever been in,'" Kipfer said. "That grab and go case ... all again, it's organic, non-GMO, and local. I think people love it."

Kipfer notes that charging fees "probably should be a little bit higher," but the charging isn't a loss for the retailer. Instead it is "a profit center." Remember brand messaging is an invitation to visit your brand.  How are you extending your brand invitation? 

So, in addition to gas pumps, the Colfax Avenue Choice Market features two high-speed 50 kW DC chargers. Each is fitted with a standard CCS connector as well as a CHAdeMO plug for charging Nissan Leafs and similar models. The station also uses a Nissan Leaf as a delivery vehicle.

Online digital messaging matters as well, Choice Market highlighted its digital signage that listed the price of gas and electricity in a Facebook post on Earth Day. The post read, "Happy Earth Day! This past week a simple tweet of our sign on #colfaxave was shared around the world. @thechoicemarket is happy to see folks taking notice of the shifting #mobility landscape and the very real financial incentives with transitioning to an #electricvehicle. Sea change indeed. #chargingforward"

In case you did not know, the Colfax Avenue Choice Market opened in 2020. The 2,700-square-foot format features fuel pumps, EV supercharging, a bike share terminal, electric scooter charging stations and solar collection on the canopy. It also offers autonomous checkout, order and pay ahead via the Choice mobile app, and traditional checkout.

Continuing to evolve, Choice Market is partnering with Health Hospitality Partners, headquartered in St. Louis, to develop a new format, Choice Mini-Mart. The model was slated to launch at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus during the second quarter of 2022, as Convenience Store News previously reported.

The new format — which was specifically designed for non-traditional retail spaces such as hospitals, airports and campuses — will feature Choice: NOW, a technology that uses artificial intelligence and cameras to checkout customers without the need for a cashier, prepared food and natural groceries, as well as everyday necessities.

According to Johnson, “Brand relevance is in part driven with innovation in new food products in combination with new avenues of distribution all of which are the platform for the new electricity.” 

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, smaller footprint, developing brands, fresh flowers, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food that is portable according to Johnson. 

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