It’s all about the convenience store. According to a recent National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) survey of US convenience store owners, in-store sales grew in 2020, with twice as many reporting sales increases than decreases (59% vs. 30%, respectively) in 2020.
Convenience stores, which sell 80% of the fuel purchased in the country, experienced a decrease in fuel sales and commuter traffic throughout the pandemic. But retailers adjusted their in-store offers to focus more on more on take-home meals and grab-and-go meal solutions:
- 49% put more emphasis on pre-packaged ready-to-eat meals
- 41% focused more on prepared foodservice meals
- 24% focused more on ready-to-heat take-home meals
Sales figures from the NACS CSX database confirms this post-pandemic sales trend. From April through November 2020 (December data is not yet finalized), ready-to-eat and ready-to-eat meal options both saw double-digit increases compared to the same period in 2019.
To view the report, CLICK HERE.
