Thousands of new products and services launch in the convenience store industry each year. But which will be successful in today’s competitive marketplace?
CStore Decisions’ 2023 Hot New Products Contest evaluated a number of new product launches and is awarding the products set for success at c-stores this year.
CStore Decisions received numerous entries across dozens of categories. A panel of retailer experts judged this year’s entries. Winners were determined using a point system that examined key factors for success including innovation, packaging and more. New products and services are defined as having launched in 2023.
Introducing the 2023 CStore Decisions Hot New Products contest winners:
Beverages
Gold: Keurig Dr Pepper — Dr Pepper Strawberries & Cream
Silver: The Coca-Cola Co. — Coca-Cola Creations Ultimate
Bronze: RISE Brewing Co.— Salted Caramel Oat Milk Nitro Cold Brew Latte
Candy
Gold: Chocxo — Dark Chocolate Coconut Cup 2-Pack
Silver: PIM Brands Inc. — Welch’s ZERO SUGAR Fruity Bites
Bronze: PIM Brands Inc. — Welch’s Juicefuls HeartThrobs Juicy Fruit Snacks
Roller Grill
Gold: Ruiz Foods Inc. — Spicy Queso Beef Tornados
Silver: Home Market Foods — Eisenberg Blazing Cheddar Sausage
Bronze: Home Market Foods — Mike’s Hot Honey Chicken RollerBites
Lunch Daypart
Gold: Rich Products — Cheesy Pull Apart Flatbread
Silver: Chester’s Chicken — Chester’s New Everything Fried Chicken Sandwich
Bronze: Hunt Brothers Pizza — Italian Trio Pizza
Breakfast
Gold: Nordic Waffles — Berries and Cream Waffle Sandwich
Silver: Tyson Foods — Jimmy Dean Sausage, Egg, & Cheese Biscuit Roll-Ups
Bronze: Lamb Weston — Fully Cooked, Heat & Serve Mini Waffled Hash Brown
Foodservice Components & Ingredients
Gold: Aspire Bakeries — La Brea Bakery Plant Based Brioche Bun
Silver: Tyson Foods — Hillshire Farm Cupping Pepperoni
Bronze: Rich Products — Gluten-Free Parbaked Detroit-Style Pizza Crust
Foodservice Packaging
Gold: Inline Plastics Corp. — Safe-T-Chef
Silver: Anchor Packaging — Anchorware Reusables
Foodservice Equipment
Gold: TurboChef — PLEXOR A3 Automated Ventless Oven
Silver: PreciTaste — Prep Assistant
Bronze: Hoshizaki America Inc. — Pizza Prep Table Refrigerator
General Merchandise
Gold: Calico Brands Inc. — Scripto Hybrid Lighter Designer 50ct
Silver: BIC USA —BIC Ecolutions Lighter
Bronze: Treat Planet — BPA-Free Pet Toy
Energy
Gold: E-Alternative Solutions (Mojo Balanced Energy) — Mojo Balanced Energy Pouches
Silver: Vitamin Energy — Vitamin Energy “Clinically Proven” Energy Shots
Bronze: Vivazen — Fastkaps
Tobacco and Tobacco Alternatives
Gold: Black Buffalo — Black Buffalo ZERO (Nicotine-Free) Pouches and Long Cut
Silver: Swedish Match — Game Leaf Dark Rum
Bronze: Kretek International Inc. — Djarum Bliss
Sweet Snacks & Desserts
Gold: Hostess Brands — Hostess Kazbars
Silver: Rich Products — Our Specialty Treat Shop Tres Leches Style Cake Cups
Bronze: Ruby Jewel — Mocha Macchiato Ice Cream Sandwich
Salty Snacks
Gold: Whisps Corp. — Whisps Cheddar Baked Cheese Bites
Silver: 1440 Foods (Pure Protein) — Popped Crisps
Bronze: General Mills Convenience — Chex Mix Remix
Meat Snacks
Gold: Fiorucci Foods Inc. — Fiorucci Pizza Flavored Paninos Snack Pack
Silver: Carl Buddig and Co. — Old Wisconsin 2.5oz Hot and Spicy Sausage and Pepper Jack Cheese Sticks
Bronze: Wenzel’s Farm — Bacon Cheddar Sticks 2 oz.
Store Equipment
Gold: Adco Industries — Stowaway Cart
Silver: US LED — LAS1 LED Architectural Strip with Selectable CCT
Bronze: Modern Store Equipment — Secure Display Case
Technology
Gold: Epson America Inc. — Epson OmniLink TM-m50II-H POS Receipt Printer
Gold: Lula Convenience — The Lula Store Platform
Silver: Quorso US Inc — Quorso
Bronze: Contract Datascan LLC— Dart Smart
