Convenience store’s Mix and Match Bundling Picking Up

Customer migration and an evolving food market place has many a chain food retail leader up-late at night contemplating next steps in the battle for share of stomach according to Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru™. 

The Grocerant Niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food is driving change in food retail around the world.  Today’s we spotlight the United Kingdom with a compilation of facts from HIM research. 

This past Mother’s Day HIM found “the proportion of shoppers on a ‘meal for tonight/today’ shopping mission more than doubled compared with a regular Sunday! (from 5% on a non-event Sunday to 11% on mother’s day.) It should come as no surprise that the proportion of men in a c-store on Mothering Sunday is significantly higher than the average Sunday, as they panic buy for their wife or mum! (62% vs 51%)”

So where are C-store customers coming from?  Where here is where HIM finds many coming from:” UK adults are spreading their monthly grocery spend even thinner across a growing number of retailers. 27% of UK adults say they are using a higher number of different retailers in a typical month vs this time last year. Just 8% said less.”

Him went on “The research shows that in a typical week 96% of UK adults will now use a supermarket, 70% will use a convenience store, 43% will use a discounter and a similar proportion are now buying groceries online.” Even more interesting “30% of UK adults don’t do a regular ‘main shop’ anymore they spread their monthly grocery spend across a number of retailers throughout each week.”

Mix and Match meal bundling is a key driver of the success of the Grocerant niche in the US and around the world according to our Grocerant Guru™.  Him found that: The average number of items bought in a convenience store has hit 3 products for the first time in 10 years. 

In it’s annual Convenience Tracking Report here are three inportant findings:

1. 20% of shoppers had 5 for more items up for 17% in 2014
2. “top-up” now accounts for 40% of shoppers and 44% of spend
3. 31% of shoppers bought only a single item

Small footprint, non-traditional fresh food retailers are offering more and more choice in fresh prepared Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat food.  Foodservice Solutions® team see’s momentum building for more fresh food not less in all retail outlets.  If success does leave clues and it does, it’s time to get on the Grocerant niche bandwagon. 

Since 1991 retail food consultancy Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Foodservice Solutions® Would you like a Grocerant Scorecard? Visit: www.FoodserviceSolutions.us http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant, twitter.com/grocerant or Facebook

Pizza is Hand Held Food Fresh and Fast

There is seemingly one universal commonality in the food sector.  That is Pizza is the automatic alternative to cooking dinner in most households. Pizza is everywhere and growing locations, in quality of offerings, and speed of service according to Foodservice Solutions® team. 

Now  A1 concepts a kiosk manufacturer has created a new pizza kiosk which will allow consumers to purchase a fresh pizza on the spot. Yes, that means Right Here Right Now. 

A1 concepts has been around since 2012   they are  preparing to release its newest model of pizza kiosks, called NXT Pizza, which will be unveiled at the NAMA One show in Las Vegas.

"The brand name of our pizza kiosks is NXT pizza, the next generation pizzas. Available 24/7 at locations with lots of foot traffic like airports and malls," A1 Concepts CEO Ronald Rammers said in an email.  

"After choosing one of the four pizza flavors, the pizza kiosk makes an authentic fresh dough from water and flour," Rammers said. "Imagine, the customer can see this with their own eyes so they know their pizza is fresh."

The customer will not be bored waiting for the pizza to finish, “the kiosk provides information on the screen about the process as well as a variety of entertainment ,so there is also entertainment like previews of the latest movies, the customer can watch as the pizza cooks  Rammers said.

"Each pizza kiosk is offering four different pizza flavors. One flavor is the same all over the world and is a recognizable cheese pizza (Margarita) two other flavors are picked out with the local master distributor of a country and are in the style of pepperoni pizza’s but can also be defined," Rammers said.

 Each pizza is 10.63 inches in diameter and is served with thin Italian crust. They also are served with a variety of ingredients. Customers can choose from several cheeses and toppings including mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, ham, vegetables and herbs.

"Simple is the keyword to the success of the NXT pizza kiosks," Rammers said. "Different payment systems are available including contactless payments and debit/credit cards. Each and every payment system is available globally."

It should be noted that Rammers also mentioned that the pizzas are never touched during the cooking process. The process is designed to follow all health and safety protocols.

One of the key goals of A1 Concepts is to allow customers to order pizzas from anywhere. For example, A1 Concepts plans to have its kiosks available in hotels, retailers, hospitals, universities, resorts and from home. "There is an option to get your pizza delivered at home!" Rammers said. "Just go online and find a delivery point in your own area. After placing your order, the pizza will be delivered."

"The strong concept of all our food solutions offered by A1 Concepts is fresh and never frozen," Rammers said. "It is the next generation for those who are seeking for quality and convenience."

For international corporate presentations, educational forums, or keynotes contact: 

 Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us  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. www.FoodserviceSolutions.us

Dinner Time Lunch Time Are Fast Becoming Mini Meal Time

Consumers are not eating less, not eating out less, nor are they eating fewer meals according to Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru™.  What they are doing is eating smaller meals more often.  What were once called a quick meal on the run, fast lunch, a desk lunch, or a quick dinner, has a new popular vernacular it’s called a snack. Simply put consumers are eating more meals but smaller ones. 

New research from CivicScience  found that “51% of consumers snack more than once on an average day.”  What is important is just who the study found eating these mini meals.  Who is the Multi-Snacker?

Here is what they found:

• Gender: Skews slightly towards women (55% vs. 45% men).
• Age: Those 18 and under are 26% more likely than average to be multi-snackers. Among adults, those aged 18 to 24 and 35 to 44 are more likely to snack multiple times per day.
• Snack Food Preference: Multi-snackers are somewhat more likely to prefer sweet snacks than do single snackers or non-snackers. In fact, the more often someone snacks, the higher overall their preference for sweet snacks.
• Sedentary Lifestyles: 25% of multi-snackers say that TV is important or a passion, compared to 20% of single snackers and 15% of non-snackers who say this. Multi-snackers are somewhat more likely to watch more hours of TV in an average day.
• Unhealthy Eating: Multi-snackers are 66% more likely than single snackers to say that the reason they don’t eat healthier is “not enough time / too much work.” This is two times the number of non-snackers who also say the same.
• Self-Esteem: Multi-snackers are more likely than single or non-snackers to see themselves as less physically attractive than others their age.

Interestingly CivicScience did not find that "urbanicity" had any effect overall on snacking frequency, nor did income. Snackers also are not any more likely than the general population to try new products before others.  So then Who is the Healthy Snacker?

• Age: The healthy snacker skews much older, with 48% of them being over the age of 55 compared to 38% of all U.S. adults who fall into that age group.
• More Educated: 24% of healthy snackers have a college or professional degree compared to 18% of the general population.
• Single Snackers: Healthy snackers are most likely of all snackers to only snack once per day.
• Healthy Eaters: They are 87% more likely to buy organic food regularly.
• Active Lifestyles: This generally older group of consumers is very active, being 50% more likely to exercise fairly often (at least several times per week).
• Brand vs. Price: When shopping for food, they believe brand and price are equally important when making a purchase decision.

Mini meals are fast becoming a mainstay in the American food landscape. Retailers must consider time of day, season, and fresh if they are looking to garner increased customer counts, top line sale and bottom line profits. Mini-meals are key to driving both customer counts and profits.

Are you interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions 5P’s of Food Marketing 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:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.

Can Publix, Kroger, and Wal-Mart Survive the On-Slot of Online Competitors?

Without incorporating quality Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat grocerant niche fresh prepared food into the mix can Publix, Kroger, and Wal-Mart survive the on-slot of Online competitors?  Well our own Grocerant Guru™ was wondering himself. Our Grocerant Guru says that all three will survive the next 5 years however if they do not  improve the fresh food focus, quality, and consistency they may look quite a bit different some will have even fewer locations than they have today. 

In a recent study from Nielsen, focusing on the online grocery industry  they found it is growing like never before; “A quarter of the global respondents of the survey were already ordering grocery products online for home delivery. This certainly indicates the gradual shift of users to the online market from the traditional medium of grocery purchasing.”

Even more interesting in the report is that more than “half (55%) of the respondents who haven’t ordered grocery online yet are willing to use it in the future. This a solid hint of how big the online grocery industry could turn out to be in future.”

Here is why legacy retailers need to worry.  Many online retailers are also introducing an automatic online subscription service, in which orders get routinely replenished at a specified frequency. The report says that 14% of its respondents have already subscribed to such service. While, more than half (54%) of the respondents were willing to try their hands on such subscription services in the future”

Publix, Kroger, and Wal-Mart are huge, so why worry about online grocery start-ups?  Here’s why some of these start-up’s are huge as well including AmazonFresh, Google, Instacart.  Then there are others Groceries-Express.com, AmericaGrocer.com, NetGrocer.com, FreskDirect.com, Peapod.com, Urbangrocery.com and we could go on.  

The study also found; “The idea of Virtual stores for grocery is also gaining popularity day by day. 13% of the global respondents of the survey said that they were already using a virtual store. On the other hand, almost every six in ten (58%) were willing to check out the virtual stores in the upcoming time.”

It’s is estimated that legacy grocery stores could lose 18% of today’s sales to these new no non-traditional fresh food grocery retailers over the next five years according to our Grocerant Guru™. Thus, the need to improve the quality, positioning, and consistency of all grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food within the store while there is still time.  

Are you interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions 5P’s of Food Marketing 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:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.