Dollar Stores, Grocery Stores, C-store Garner Restaurant Consumers

 

Success does leave clues, those who pick them up win, those that do not loose.  Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® says, “watch what customer do, where they shop you will pick up all of the success clues you need to drive your business forward.

Travel app GasBuddy and convenience retail software provider Professional Datasolutions Inc. (PDI) last week issued their first joint report that examines how the pandemic has influenced shopping behavior in the $650 billion fuel and convenience industry.

So, the “Buddy Up: C-Store Shopper Insights” report combines GasBuddy consumer survey data from more than 15,000 convenience retail consumers across all key U.S. geographic locations and PDI consumer-buying data from 5,500 mid to large-size convenience retail sites across all key U.S. geographic locations from its Insight Cloud solution. The inaugural report’s focus, The New Pandemic Consumer, utilizes this data to identify changes in c-store shopping habits from 2020 to 2021.

Key Findings

·         C-store shoppers have grown over 4% in the past year compared to 5% growth in grocery and 6% in dollar stores.

·         Younger, female shoppers make up a majority of the c-store customer base.

·         75% of consumers are shopping for fuel in 2021, up from 68% saying so in 2020.

·         86% of respondents are paying close attention to retailers’ commitment to the safety of their employees.

If you are a restaurant chain that has lost customer you now know where they have gone.  Looking for younger female shoppers?  Guess what they are on the move.  Does your restaurant brand look more like 1995, than 2022 or yesterday vs today? Brands must be dynamic not static.

Battle for Share of Stomach

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, stated, “By integrating GasBuddy’s vast consumer data insights with PDI’s already robust capabilities, it provides a more comprehensive view of the fuel and convenience retail industry,” ... “This report highlights how our industry is ripe for growth as the pandemic has caused consumers to value convenience more than ever. Brands that are optimizing for this new breed of shopper — like providing delivery services and special offers on food or gasoline, and focusing on cleanliness — are seeing more transactions and customer loyalty.”

In case you did not know, PDI acquired GasBuddy in April 2021, furthering innovation across the spectrum from wholesale to retail, from canopy to store. The “Buddy Up: C-Store Shopper Insights” report is the first of a series of quarterly joint reports, combining PDI transactional data with GasBuddy consumer survey responses.

Are you looking for a new partnership to drive sales? Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit GrocerantGuru.com for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your continued success.

Indulgent Branding Drives7-Eleven Customer Counts UP

Success does leave clues and 7-Eleven is one of the very best food retailers at picking up all the right clues to drive top line sales and bottom line profits according to Steven Johnson, the Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Once again this past July 11, 7-Eleven Day, experienced a significant increase in foot traffic due to its giveaway of free Slurpee’s between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. GasBuddy, the smartphone app that connects drivers to their Perfect Pit Stop, found that the giveaway had a major positive effect at the more than 2,400 U.S. 7-Eleven stores that sell fuel.

The annual July 11 branded indulgent promotion drove the average number of visits per 7-Eleven gas station up 43 percent when compared to the previous 30-day period, according to GasBuddy's data. When compared to the previous four Wednesdays, including Independence Day, there was a 51-percent increase in station visits the report found.

The GasBuddy data showed there was a 36-percent increase in market share on July 11 compared to the past four Wednesdays. Typically, 7-Eleven ranked No. 3 in foot traffic after Shell and QuikTrip. 7-Eleven jumped to the No. 1 spot that day.

Frank Beard, convenience store and retail trends analyst at GasBuddy stated "This is a great example of how in-store promotions can separate a brand from the competition," … "More than 80 percent of convenience stores sell fuel, and the challenge has always been to convert pump traffic into in-store traffic. 7-Eleven used a well-known branded product Slurpees to drive customer counts.  What are you doing?."

Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your continued success.

Casey’s General Stores 1 Million steps too Success

The very first step to success is getting someone to step into your stores according to Tacoma WA based global grocerant niche consultancy Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson. The second is edifying a branded relationship with customer relevant technology.   The third is elevating that experience with a sample via taste test once they are in your store according to Johnson.

Customer relevance was top of mind when Casey’s General Stores ’launched its mobile app in January 2016. Now their mobile app has surpassed 1 million downloads, making it one of the most popular fuel retailer and convenience store mobile application on the market.

Casey’s mobile app was built by GasBuddy’s Retailer Services, makers of GasBuddy Business Pages, the B2B SaaS platform for the $650 billion retail fuel and convenience store market that enables marketers to help them create a “Perfect Pit Stop” for consumers. Now with 1 million downloads I guess they understand the niche that they are in.

 Terry Handley, Casey’s General Stores president and CEO stated “Working directly with GasBuddy has helped with our mission to provide our customers with exceptional service and great value on our offerings,” … “GasBuddy has a strong understanding of the industry and provides the technology necessary for us to reach our customers and remain competitive.”

Casey’s mobile app has soared to incredible popularity with features and functions that enable its consumers to order pizza, made-to-order sub sandwiches and appetizers. Casey’s recently completed the implementation of online ordering in all of its stores company-wide, and the Casey’s app makes online ordering even more convenient for customers using their mobile devices.

Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a Grocerant Program Assessment, Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or call our Grocerant Guru®.  Since 1991 www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. Contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or 253-759-7869