TECHNOLOGY
The Taste of Technology As with all other areas of the store, technology is playing a bigger role in foodservice By Melissa Kress OVER THE PAST DECADE, the convenience channel has been hard at work redefining consumers' perception of its food offerings. What was known as "gas station food" was often the butt of jokes in movies and on television and, in real life, many consumers could not imagine choosing to go to their local convenience store to pick up a pizza instead of their local pizzeria.
and failure," said Kay Segal, founding partner of Phoenix-based consulting firm Business Accelerator Team (BATeam).
That has changed. Through organizations like Partnership for a Healthier America, which counts many c-store retailers among its membership, and a concentrated shift toward fresh, healthy and on-trend offerings, many convenience players have stepped up their game.
"These tasks can be handled without the newer technology, but consistency of execution is the issue," Segal explained. "With technology involved, there is more likely consistency of process and there are trackable metrics to ensure exceptions are flagged quickly and corrective action can be obtained."
For operations, the appropriate use of technology can assist with everything from labor scheduling to production planning to recipe management.
But it takes more than just selling fresh food to have a profitable foodservice program. As with all other areas of the store, technology is playing a bigger role in foodservice.
Technology can also help a retailer be competitive from a customer engagement and marketing standpoint.
"To state it bluntly, technology today within foodservice is the difference between success
"From being found — via things like Yelp or Google — to engaging with consumers from
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