To many consumers, the convenience store represents just that: convenience shopping. But Sumit Kar, Sr. Director of Operations, Vixxo, and Eric Warner, Director of Construction, Vixxo, both know there’s a lot that goes into making the convenience store experience engaging for the customer. Kar and Warner stopped by Get Your Fix for the first in a two-part series on what makes the convenience store experience valuable.
Kar noted three important variables convenience stores rely on to stay relevant and in business during a shifting landscape of consumer behavior and a pandemic that has impacted all facets of retail. “How do we control costs, stay competitive in the environment, and adapt to the customers’ changing needs?” Kar said. “I think those are the things everyone in the convenience store industry is trying to solve.”
In recent years convenience stores have found themselves, with increasing fashion: adapting more and more to the shifting needs of the consumer. “It’s gone from a traditional convenience store model, selling beverages, and basic commodities, to a more retail model,” Kar said. “The consumer today is much more demanding. They want healthier, organic, and more high-end products.”
“The biggest shift I’ve seen over the past five-to-ten years is probably the size of the facilities,” Warner said. “They’ve increased from the standard twelve hundred, fifteen hundred square foot boxes up to five, six, and seven thousand square foot.” Stores are maximizing the lot space to include more gas pumps on the outside and an elegant, inviting décor on the inside. Increased offerings and capabilities inside and outside of the store are all drivers to increase foot traffic.
