Convenience stores are more than a burgeoning channel in which brands of all sizes can participate, test and learn, generate trial and grow with confidence…they are a growing force leveraging smart strategies to win a bigger slice of shoppers food and beverage needs. Read on to learn more about the wealth of opportunity awaiting brands willing to explore the c-store realm to build more than just sales, but a whole new way to connect with shoppers.
When we think of the vastness of the food and beverage marketplace in the U.S., our thoughts typically turn to grocery retail behemoths such as Walmart, Kroger and Whole Foods as well as ecomm driven venues such as AMAZON and Instacart. Still, there is another sales channel that millions visit each and every day to satisfy their cravings and quench their thirst…a channel that is not only growing, but accounts for nearly one-third of all U.S. retail outlets…AND one that offers a wealth of sales and learning opportunity for food and beverage related brands. It’s the convenience store.
The Changing C-Store Scene:
In recent years, convenience stores (c-stores) have transitioned from being teen hangouts where cokes, smokes, and gas served as their signature. Today’s c-stores have become destinations for quality foodservice offerings, providing more inviting, ‘market-like’ shopping experiences designed to encourage shoppers to linger longer and spend more – not to mention fill up the gas tank in the process. No longer just a quick stop for buying milk and bread late at night for breakfast the next morning, they are now places of discovery where shoppers can find new and adventurous flavors and tastes across the food and beverage realm, including a wider range of ‘better choice’ options to meet changing shopper dietary and lifestyle style needs.
Moreover, in their quest to source more consumer dollars at the expense of grocery stores and fast-food restaurants, they are focused on connecting with shoppers through mobile apps that tap into shopper lifestyle and purchase behavior, delivering relevant content to keep them engaged and coming back for more. As testament to this, over the past 2 years, larger c-store chains 7-Eleven, Casey’s and Wawa have invested in creating full-funnel retail media networks aimed at leading their customers in-store and keeping them loyal. All this said, it’s not surprising that c-store sales volume is expected to chart a +5.6% CAGR through 2028.
An Ideal Testing Ground:
With a constant flow of shoppers moving in and out of c-stores round the clock and given that many visitors make several stops per week at their favorite, local c-store, this sales channel provides a wealth of opportunity for brands selling in this space to connect with a never-ending flow of shoppers with much frequency to help grow brand awareness and sales growth. This makes c-stores an ideal outlet for testing new products, new flavor twists on existing favorites and more. Moreover, the fact that food and beverages sold in this channel are heavily single serve oriented makes for an attractive price point to induce trial. In turn, C-store operators not only recognize their value on this front but have adopted product novelty as a strategic, competitive lure, with their shoppers reciprocating by perceiving the channel as the place where they can readily find new tastes and flavors before they emerge on the shelves of the traditional grocery store. Truly, c-stores are a golden gateway for driving awareness and trial.
All this said, it’s no wonder that mega brands like Mondelez and M&M Mars are using c-stores to help introduce the steady stream of c-store shoppers to new twists on traditional favorites to build awareness and generate trial. In 2023, these brands launched Oreo Ice Cream Treats and M&M Ice Cream Cookie Treats, respectively, into c-stores, providing shoppers with the opportunity to try these products in a single-serve format, all with the expectation that the taste experience would lead those same shoppers to purchase larger packs in grocery – providing a winning strategy for both the brand and shoppers. Not surprisingly, both brands scored big with these entries, emerging among top-selling, pace-setting new products sold within the channel last year.
The same holds true in the c-store’s beverage section, where a refrigerated wall of an ever-changing sea of products and flavor choices await shoppers. Ghost Energy, a lifestyle and supplement brand, launched Ghost FaZe Pop energy drink exclusively at select 7-Elevens and related banner stores in early 2023, as a means of expanding its reach beyond DTC and supplement stores and to engage the ‘gaming’ crowd with a nostalgia-inspired flavored drink. With cooler clings highlighting the brand’s participation in the retailers’ Pac-Man themed “Power Up” sweepstakes, the brand worked to drive 7Rewards members to enter the sweepstakes by purchasing the beverage.
In the end, these brands recognized and utilized the power of the c-store channel to elevate visibility of their products, generate trial and connect shoppers with the experience of these items to create new users who now have the incentive to purchase these products at both the c-store and traditional, local grocery store.
Preparing for Entry:
With their mission today being about so much more than convenience, but to create a competitive point-of difference that both attracts customers and drives impulse purchases, c-store operators are constantly on the lookout for what’s new in the way of new products and flavors. Additionally, as they continue to implement full-funnel, retailer media networks that connect with their shoppers, the combination of consumer-focused marketing tools and openness to new products makes them fertile ground for brands of all sizes to test new product entries.
Just as with any sales channel, brands considering entering the c-store space must deliver against a set of essentials to not only be accepted by store operators but to meet with success with c-store shoppers, including:
- Providing a high-quality product offering strong added value – i.e., great tasting snack delivering on texture, providing a hot and trending flavor, and one that is bite sized
- Giving permission to believe that the product addresses a growing shopper want | need with supportive consumer research
- Creating a distinct package design that is tailored to c-store layout limitations and customer needs – i.e., properly sized to fit shelf configuration, portable for convenience
- Willingness to invest in marketing support, conduct a test launch on a limited | regional distribution basis, negotiate on pricing and distribution to gain ‘test & learn’ insight
- Ensuring that reliable, scalable, and nimble manufacturing capabilities are in place to avoid product shortages | out of stocks
With their renewed emphasis on shoppers, their needs and engaging with them like never before, C-stores offer a burgeoning channel in which brands of all sizes can participate, test and learn, generate trial and grow. Through sound strategy, delivering the essentials and with a willingness to invest, food and beverage brands entering this space are afforded more than just sales within the c-store channel, but offer opportunity to take what they’ve learned on this front, apply it to the marketplace at large, and build their brand with confidence.
As a full-service agency, our goal is to continually find ways for food and beverage brands to expand their user base, drive incremental sales and form lasting connections that lead to shopper loyalty – and this article offers just a sliver of how we think, our knowledge of the marketplace and our practical business experience with brands. Contact usto learn more about how we can help address your marketing needs and enable your brand to embrace what’s possible.
