It would be quite the understatement to say our industry’s core offers have changed dramatically since March, as the coronavirus pandemic quickly upended day-to-day operations.

Facts & Figures

52%
Retailers who said their grocery sales had increased since March

49%
Retailers offering free or discounted food and beverage or fuel to first responders

32%
Retailers who said that employee conversations with customers were the most effective way to share their pandemic response activities

In 2019, fuel sales, which make up more than 60% of total industry sales, were down 3.9% compared with 2018, recently released NACS State of the Industry data indicate. As states of emergencies due to COVID-19 swept across the nation, fuel demand was cut in half, and commuter traffic virtually disappeared. Convenience stores that served these daily commuters and those located off major highways were hit the hardest.

Less forecourt traffic also affected in-store sales, with fewer customers going inside the store to purchase additional merchandise. For reference, the NACS Consumer Fuels Survey (see the March 2020 NACS Magazine cover story) found that more than half of gas-buying customers also went inside the store (52% in 2020 vs. 35% in 2015) to purchase drinks, snacks and other grab-and-go items.

Foodservice, one of the largest profit drivers inside the store, had its own challenges as safety precautions impacted self-serve offerings like coffee, roller grill, hot bars, salad bars, bakery and cold- and frozen-dispensed beverages.

Convenience stores traditionally sell immediate consumption items—83% of all products sold at a store are consumed within an hour—but retailers pivoted early on during the pandemic crisis to offer more center-store items like cleaning and toiletry items, and 52% of retailers surveyed in March said their grocery sales increased.

NACS research shows that convenience stores contribute more than $1 billion a year to charitable causes, and there is no question this community spirit has remained strong during the pandemic.

Convenience retailers have long supported first responders and are continuing to do so: Nearly half (49%) of retailer members surveyed in March are supporting these individuals by offering free beverages and steep discounts on food, delivering free meals and providing free fuel. Retailers are also donating product to local food banks and other programs and supplying masks and other PPEs to emergency and health-care professionals.

Retailers expressed the importance of their teams serving customers. Nearly one in three (32%) said that employee conversations with customers were the most effective means of communication for sharing their pandemic response activities.

There are many amazing stories to tell, including these:

• Sheetz and Wawa, which compete in some markets, teamed up to provide emergency food bank relief amid COVID-19. The companies donated a combined 1,000 lunches and a combined $4,000 to Helping Harvest Food Bank and Second Harvest Food Bank in Pennsylvania.
• 7-Eleven opened its first-ever hospital pop-up c-store at Children’s Medical Center Dallas, the flagship hospital of Children’s Health, which is open to hospital staff, patients and their families. “The doctors, nurses and care teams at Children’s Health are true heroes,” said 7-Eleven President and CEO Joe DePinto.
• Casey’s donated 30,000 pounds of deli meat to a local food bank to support hunger relief and is donating $500,000 over the coming year through a new partnership with Feeding America to support 52 food banks serving school-age children across 16 states.
• The Hershey Company committed $1 million to produce face masks among numerous other community response efforts it is undertaking in the wake of COVID-19.
• General Mills facilities are manufacturing and donating $5 million worth of product to Feeding America food banks.
• ExxonMobil reconfigured manufacturing operations in Louisiana to make medical-grade hand sanitizer. The products will be donated to health-care workers and first responders across the country.

While we all hope to return to some sort of normalcy very soon, there is no question that the efforts of the convenience store industry will help us move forward more quickly.