CANDY & SNACKS
Boosting Sales Outside the In-Store Experience C-store operators can meet shoppers where they are with an omnichannel approach By Danielle Romano
usually means lower impulse sales, but this doesn’t have to be the case.
LOWER FOOT TRAFFIC
Although consumer behavior has changed, whereby today’s convenience store shoppers demand an omnichannel experience, one truth still reigns: the right offer at the right time can have a major impact on a retailer’s bottom line. According to an AlixPartners study released in January that surveyed 1,001 adult U.S. consumers, convenience store visits remained low as 29 percent of respondents said they didn’t make even one visit to a c-store in the past week. Even looking ahead to the next six months, 26 percent said they would stay away from c-stores, while 20 percent said they would visit three to four times a week, and just 15 percent said they would visit at least daily. The highest percentage — 39 percent — said they would make one to two visits per week.
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Conversely, the AlixPartners 2021 Convenience Store Industry Outlook study found that c-store consumers across all age groups expected to order more deliveries over the next 12 months than they did in the previous 12 months. Additionally, 23 percent of the consumers who participated in the study said they used curbside pickup in the past six months. “The good news for c-stores is that the pandemic has squeezed five years of progress into seven months,” said Eric Dzwoncyk, global co-leader of the restaurants, leisure and hospitality practice at AlixPartners, a business consultancy. “By focusing on loyalty programs and delivery services, c-stores have closed the gap with other retailers, especially QSRs [quick-service restaurants]. As a megatrend, convenience is only going to get bigger. Who’s better positioned than a good convenience store?” Today’s convenience channel operators must account for this major shift in consumer purchasing behavior, which is anticipated to continue post-pandemic. Adapting is especially important for impulse-driven categories — namely, candy and snacks.
