Fresh ideas for C-stores, more competition for grocers

Produce? At a convenience store? It’s not as crazy as it sounds and the C-store industry’s trade group wants to help members make fresh moves the right way.

Sales of fresh fruits and vegetables in convenience stores grew 10.3%, nearly four times the overall 2.7% growth rate of produce sales in the United States in 2014, according to Nielsen data cited by the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS). A member survey the trade group conducted in June showed that more than three fourths (77%) of members say they sell fresh fruits and vegetables and almost 6 in 10 (57%) sell packaged salads. Roughly half (47%) also sell cut fruit and vegetables. In the past six months, 50% of all convenience retailers say they have expanded their fresh fruit sales, 30% have increased their cut fruit and vegetable offers and 21% are offering more salads.

Given these trends, NACS and the United Fresh Produce Association created a guide called “Are You Fit for Fresh?” to serve as a 10-point checklist to assess whether a specific store should grow its fresh produce offer.

“We want to provide solutions from the entire fresh produce supply chain to help convenience store retailers capitalize on this ‘fresh’ opportunity,” said NACS-United Fresh Convenience Task Force co-chairman Ron Carkoski. “Retailers who share an interest to develop a fresh program can be ensured that our effort will address best practices and educational programs to achieve success,” said Carkoski, who also is United Fresh’s past chairman of the board and president and CEO of Ephrata, PA-based Four Seasons Family of Companies

The new publication is the second deliverable from the partnership that NACS and United Fresh formed in June 2014 to identify best practices to grow produce sales in convenience stores. Earlier this year the groups published the 26-page “Building the Business Case for Produce Sales at Convenience Stores.”

“A strong produce program can attract new customers, increase sales, plus deliver strong margins,” said NACS Chairman of the Board and NACS-United Fresh Convenience Task Force co-chairman Steve Loehr, vice president of operations with La Crosse, WI-based Kwik Trip. “This resource helps retailers ask the right questions about customer demand and resources required to effectively execute a quality program.”