7-Eleven Is Getting All Charged Up for the Next Generation of Customers

 

Looking a customer ahead is what good companies do.  It is one of the successes that Steven Johnson our Grocerant Guru® regularly discuses on this blog.  7-Eleven the world’s largest convenience store chain has picked up and shared more success clues than almost any other retail food chain.   

Now 7‑Eleven Inc. is getting into the electric vehicle (EV) charging arena with its proprietary 7Charge network that is a big step-up in customer focus and a clue that they are looking a customer ahead.  While gasoline is not going away any time soon.  There will soon be a new generation of drivers that may never own a gasoline powered automobile.

So, 7-Eleven’s 7Charge is entering the market at select stores in Florida, Texas, Colorado and California. With the launch, 7‑Eleven intends to build one of the largest and most compatible EV fast-charging networks of any retailer in North America. Rollout will begin in the United States before making the jump to Canada.

The press release from 7-Eleven stated, the 7Charge network will offer EV drivers 7‑Eleven's trademark convenience and accessibility. 7Charge sites allow customers to charge any EV make and model compatible with common CHAdeMO or Combined Charging System plug types, and the 7Charge app offers a new level of convenience and coordination to customers looking for a seamless charging and payment experience.

So, the 7Charge app can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play, or by visiting 7‑Eleven.com/7charge.

Joe DePinto, president and CEO at 7‑Eleven, stated, "For over 95 years, 7‑Eleven has innovated to meet our customers' needs — delivering convenience where, when and how they want it," said. "Now, we are innovating once again to meet our customers' where they are by expanding our business to provide EV drivers convenience of the future ... today."

This new 7Charge network will deliver on the growing consumer need for EV charging infrastructure. By expanding the 7Charge network, while continuing to utilize third-party fast-charging network options, 7‑Eleven will have the ability to grow its network to match consumer demand and make EV charging available to neighborhoods that have, until now, lacked access, the company said.

While it is still rolling out, once the network's expansion is complete, 7‑Eleven will have one of the largest and most compatible fast-charging networks of any retailer in North America serving communities and customers at charging stations across its entire family of brands including Speedway and Stripes stores.

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information

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. 

Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or call our Grocerant Guru®.  Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the leader in the Grocerant niche.

Volvo Installing EV Charging Stations At Starbucks Stores

 

Talk about putting new electricity into your brand.  There is no company that edifies customer relevance better that Starbucks according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Just in case you have not heard, Volvo and Starbucks have struck a partnership to establish the first public electric vehicle charging network at the coffee company's U.S. stores. EV owners traveling within the Western States can soon enjoy a cup of coffee—or tea, or whatever you want—while fast charging their electric cars at Starbucks. Not only will this help Starbucks drive new electricity into its brand messaging it is going to put electricity into you car.  This my friends is what they call supercharged brand marketing.

Most of you know that any driver who has charged their electric vehicle at an out-of-the-way charging station in a questionable location understands how uncomfortable and frustrating that situation can be. Besides grocery and other retail stores, single chargers in ideal places are sometimes hard to come by, and can be well off the beaten path—adding time to an already time-consuming charging process. 

Therefor Volvo is implementing a strategy to bring chargers closer to your daily routine with a more creative approach, and it builds on an emerging trend in the EV space of pairing up charging providers and popular retailers.

Starting this summer, the Swedish automaker plans to install up to 60 Volvo-branded DC fast chargers powered by ChargePoint in at least 15 Starbucks locations. The charging network will cover a 1,350-mile route from the Denver area to Starbucks headquarters in Seattle, Washington. That means a fast-charging station for roughly every 100 miles, which is reasonably within the driving range of most electric vehicles.

Timing is everything and if you are tired of paying a high price for gasoline, it just might be time to buy a new EV, maybe even a Volvo.

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.”  That said, what are you waiting for?

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, developing brands, unique urban clothing, 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, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different. 

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information. 

Stewart’s Shops Looking for Next Generation of Customers

 

Looking a customer ahead is vital if you plan to grow your business over time.  At the intersection of technology advances and consumers the automobile industry is changing and consumers are testing, buying, and migrating from gasoline vehicles to electric vehicles and Stewart Shops want to roll out the welcome mat to those migrating to EV.

Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® stated, “Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food is a key driver of convenience store brand adoption.  All C-stores need to reevaluate how to message to consumers that they are welcome inside the store.”

Recently, Stewart’s Shops introduced electric vehicle chargers (EVCs) to five of its locations, having begun installation of its first store’s units, expected to be in service by the fall. That’s looking a customer ahead.

So, Stewart’s Shops broke ground on its first NYPA EVolve Electric Vehicle Fast Charging Station on July 1 in Schodack, N.Y. The chargers are powerful enough to provide a full charge to an electric vehicle in just 15 to 30 minutes. The DC (Direct Current) fast chargers have three types of plugs to fit ports on various models of electric vehicles.

EVolve New York’s chargers are available to all non-Tesla electric vehicles. Some charging stations will also have a Tesla Adapter. Stewart’s Shops currently has three Tesla supercharging stations throughout New York with plans to expand the program by installing two more by the end of 2021.

Pay attention to this part, the EVCs are expected to bring customers inside during charging to not only shop the store, but also have enough time to enjoy a hot or cold food item before departing with a fully charged battery. Are you selling grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared to tomorrows EV drivers?

They are close to being ready, as the Stewart’s Shops charging station in Schodack will be fully operational by September 2021 and is just one of five EV charging stations that Stewart’s Shops plans to open by the end of the year. The Schodack EV charging station is an extension of Stewart’s Shops current EV Charging program.

As part of NYPA’s EVolve New York Clean Energy Initiative, Stewart’s plans for other charging stations at Stewart’s Shops locations throughout New York state in Moreau, Latham, Keene and Clifton Park.

The new charging stations are not the only steps Stewart’s Shops is taking to become more sustainable. Stewart’s Shops uses solar energy at offsite location in Halfmoon and Castle Creek, N.Y., and its manufacturing plant has 2,400 individual solar panels on the rooftop that offset 75% of the power at 50 locations.

Yet, there is more, Stewart’s Shops recycles more than six tons of its cardboard daily and reuses items like totes, dairy cases, ice cream baskets, and bread trays used to make deliveries to reduce waste.

Branding begins with an invitation, at Stewarts, customers can get a discount on their coffee when they use their reusable mugs and Stewart’s also straws, as well.

Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how our Grocerant Guru® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit: us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

7-Eleven’s New EV Charging Elevates EV’s Relevance

 

Brand messaging coming from 7-Eleven is clear.  7-Eleven is looking a customer ahead and letting everyone know that if you drive an Electric Vehicle (EV) you are welcome at 7-Eeleven. There is no doubt that once again the cost of gasoline is on the rise and EV’s are top of mind.

EV are good for the environment according to many and that is part of the halo of ‘better-4-you’ products grocerant niche consumers consider important according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Let’s take a look:

 

1.       Our new 2021 Grocerant ScoreCards found 82.3% of consumers don’t know what’s for dinner at Noon, and 61.1 don’t know what’ s for dinner at 4PM %.

2.       83.1% all dinners have at least 1 grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat meal component and 68.4% have two meal components.

3.       When asked if they wanted to cook dinner from scratch or assemble dinner from fresh meal components 90.4 % of Gen Z chose assemble from Fresh Prepared Meal Components and Millennials 82.7% chose meal components.

4.       Seventy-three percent of retail prepared food purchases are taken to go

5.       Prepared food purchases are frequently a planned purchase among 59% of shoppers, while 41% of shoppers said they buy prepared foods on impulse. Dinner has the highest amount of prepared food buys with 79% of respondents making purchases for that meal, while lunch comes in at 77% and breakfast at 62%.

6.       55% of consumers would like to try autonomous EV delivery

7‑Eleven latest initiative calls for installing at least 500 Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) ports at 250 select convenience stores in the United States and Canada by the end of 2022. Ok we know that not autonomous, but its an consumer touchpoint that can’t be over look and &-Eleven knows that.

7‑Eleven President and CEO Joe DePinto, stated "7‑Eleven has always been a leader in new ideas and technology to better serve the needs of our customers," "Adding 500 charging ports at 250 7‑Eleven stores will make EV charging more convenient and help accelerate broader adoption of EVs and alternative fuels. We are committed to the communities we serve and to working toward a more sustainable future."

Yet, there is more under the halo of better-4-you as 7-Eleven pledged recently to meet a 50-percent reduction of carbon emissions by 2030. The pledge more than doubles 7-Eleven's 2016 goal to achieve a 20-percent reduction of carbon emissions from its stores by 2027. 7‑Eleven reached that reduction goal in 2019, eight years ahead of schedule.

7-Eleven is improving sustainability by seeking renewable energy solutions for its stores across the country. Initiatives include:

a.        Purchasing 100-percent wind energy for 800-plus Texas stores and 300-plus Illinois stores;

b.        Using hydropower at 150 stores in Virginia;

c.        Using solar energy to power 300 stores in Florida.

DePinto, continued "7‑Eleven's legacy is bringing convenience to the customer, and that continues to evolve — from ice on a dock in 1927 to electricity for your car today. "7‑Eleven's rapid expansion of EV charging ports across the country is good for our customers and our planet and it's the right thing to do."

7‑Eleven operates, franchises and/or licenses more than 77,175 stores in 16 countries and regions, including 16,000 in North America. We think they are doing something right and this is one of them.

For international corporate presentations, regional chain presentations, educational forums, or keynotes contact: Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions.  His extensive experience as a multi-unit restaurant operator, consultant, brand / product positioning expert, and public speaking will leave success clues for all. For more information visit GrocerantGuru.com, FoodserviceSolutions.US or call 1-253-759-7869