The days of gasoline, Cokes and smokes being enough to support a convenience store are long gone. More and more customers are looking to their neighborhood c-stores for quick and easy mealtime solutions to eat on the go or around the family dinner table.
As gasoline prices rise and tobacco products become increasingly regulated, retailers are finding that higher profit margin foodservice solutions are well worth the investments of space, money and labor they require. Not only can you satisfy your customers’ appetites for a tasty meal or snack, but consistently high-quality foodservice elevates their overall impression of your store and instills confidence in all your products and services.
Foodservice doesn’t have to be fancy to be profitable. A simple roller grill stocked with a variety of items to suit different dayparts can attract attention. For more ambitious pizza and chicken concepts, there are a host of operational options, including franchises and licensed or turnkey supplier programs, to suit just about every space, budget and available labor force.
If you already offer a good cup of coffee, you have a leg up on capturing the morning breakfast business. Adding roller grill sausages, fresh bakery items, grab-and-go or made-to-order English muffin or croissant egg and meat sandwiches and, perhaps, a breakfast pizza can boost your morning sales with little effort or expenditure.
Lunch can be as simple as a pre-made cold or hot sandwich or salad or as elaborate as a full-service deli where the meats and cheeses are sliced to order. During evening drive time, there is ample opportunity to sell whole pizzas or family dinner packs of chicken and sides. Some stores also sell take-and-bake pizzas to finish off in their home ovens.
By bundling food items with coffee or carbonated soft drinks, chips or bakery items, you can give customers reason to venture into other areas of your store and build a higher ring basket.