Stopping into a convenience store for a hot meal and a fountain drink isn’t just for road trips anymore. Even with everything that happened over the past year, c-store operators said that in-store sales improved, and a lot of those sales were for hot meals and fountain drinks.
There’s an expectation that summer travel this year will increase sales at convenience stores, especially in the immediate-to-eat prepared foods and cold beverages. Having a Follett ice dispenser and the TurboChef i3 ventless oven in your c-store will meet customer demand and help increase profits.
Offering food inside a convenience store is a built-in profit center. However, most customers are in and out of the store in less than 5 minutes. Having hot food readily available and quickly served can increase sales beyond the pump.
TurboChef’s i3 oven provides consistent results with every use and provides meals in a fraction of the time of other ovens. With the ability to store up to 200 recipes and IoT technology that allows a connected kitchen, the i3 frees up employees to concentrate on other duties, especially in labor shortages. The i3 also is ventless, making it a great addition to convenience stores that don’t have a lot of space or ventilation for cooking.
As fountain drink machines are opening back up and the hot summer months are here, convenience stores are bringing innovation to the drink dispenser area. With a high profit margin, the fountain drink area allows operators to provide various drink choices and experiment with new ideas at an extremely low cost. Circle K is innovating by launching a monthly beverage program, helping get customers back in regularly.
But as much as they love their fountain drinks, Americans also love ice to keep those drinks cold. So Circle K is also making sure that their customers have access to plenty of it by using the Follett exclusive ice delivery RIDE system. Able to fill dispensers up to 75 feet away, the RIDE system can live in a separate room or under the counter, allowing full access to the dispenser ice storage area without the costs of removing the entire system. It also gives staff the ability to clean and sanitize the dispenser without disrupting customers getting their beverages.
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