Growing Hispanic Food Sales

Hispanic menu offerings are helping c-stores add the customization, fresh ingredients and portability that appeal to c-store shoppers.

Marilyn Odesser-Torpey • Associate Editor

More convenience stores are introducing Hispanic menu items to tempt customers across demographics.

With the portability of burritos and taquitos, and the customizability of nachos and tacos, Hispanic foods are the “ideal fi t” for convenience customers, according to Ann Golladay, associate director at Datassential research fi rm.

Hispanic or Hispanic-inspired specialties are key to many American convenience store foodservice programs, especially those frequented by Latinx populations and mainstream millennials, Golladay said.

Freshly prepared Hispanic foods are both popular among consumers and profitable for retailers.

In a February Convenience Stores Keynote Report from Datassential, 74% of retailers said they offer burritos, 64% carried taquitos and/or tornados/roller burritos/“stix” and 56% featured nachos on their menus.

The report also showed that over the past year, sales of burritos in the morning daypart have increased 46%. Sales of taquitos/roller burritos/“stix” have risen 41%.

And, the report noted, opportunities for growth in the Hispanic category are significant. Eightyone percent of consumers polled said they liked tacos, while only 24% of convenience stores offer them. Seventy-nine percent of consumers said they liked nachos, while only 56% of stores include them on their menus.

ON THE MENU

Kwik Stop Convenience Stores, which has 27 locations in Nebraska and Colorado, does a brisk business with its Mexi-Fresh program in the four

fast facts:

• Mainstream millennials favor Hispanic foods. • Growth opportunities in the category are great. • Made-to-order significantly reduces waste.

stores in which it is offered, said M. David May, director of food services for Kwik Stop. One of the stores serves a largely Hispanic population, but the items sell very well in the three other locations, as well.

The Hispanic menu at Kwik Stop, which accounts for 20% of total foodservice sales, features five varieties of tacos, six types of burritos, nachos and chicken, and beef taco salads. Potato rounds, called pesos, are topped with a propriety seasoning blend and are available as a side dish or crowned with beef, beans and queso as entrée-size mega and grande pesos.

Most popular are the crispy and soft-shell tacos and grande burritos stuffed with everything from beef and beans to lettuce, onions and sour cream. The popular Mexi-Combo value meals pair the tacos and burritos with a small serving of pesos and a 24-ounce drink, May noted, and a Quick Six meal includes six tacos and two medium pesos.

All items are prepared to order from housemade ingredients such as salsa and refried beans.

“Because it’s all made to order, the program generates very little waste,” May stated.

Customers go down the line and choose their ingredients, watching the assembly through a plexiglass shield. Cost of entry into the MexiFresh program is low because it requires only the purchase of a flat top to warm the tortillas, a steam table and a cold case, he explained.

“Our gross profit margin on the program is 65%,” May said. CSD