The art of convenience retailing is knowing what your customers are looking for and directing them quickly to their favourite brands.

For the best part, you likely know what your shoppers are looking for when they visit you. You know what time they visit, how much they are willing to pay and, crucially, what they want to buy.

But are you potentially missing out on bestsellers? Are there brands that have broad appeal that have not yet made it onto your shelves? 

Over the next five pages, we speak to five suppliers to discuss why their brands deserve space in your shop. Each of these brands have been proven to sell well in convenience stores like yours when merchandised in the right way.

We also get advice on how and where you should promote them and hear from retailers who have already worked with these companies to grow their sales
and profits.

There are also reasons to call us on every page, such as receiving free PoS or stock to get started. Read on and find out if there are new products that you can take advantage of to bring in new, loyal customers.

Hooch

Hooch is a sparkling alcoholic fruit brew available in original lemon and exotic passion fruit & mango flavours. Made with real fruit flavours, Hooch is the ultimate summer drink, growing at 15% in impulse. It is available in price-marked packs, cans and bottles to appeal to a range of consumers. 

How to merchandise it

Keep bestsellers in the chiller to take advantage of impulse purchases. With 55% of alcohol being consumed within two hours of purchase, placing bottles and cans in the chiller creates an easy option for grab and go shoppers. 

Hooch is perfect for festivals and BBQ seasons, so retailers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland can capitalise on sales by cross-promoting Hooch with other products that appeal to these occasions. 

Retailer view

“We’re in a student area, so we have high demand for Hooch. It provides good, solid, regular business for us, especially when the weather is warmer. We probably sell about a case a week, which we’re happy with.

“It sells on promotion, which is the thing that really drives sales. Sometimes we have a promotion on the 10-packs, but generally, our three for £5 offer really works.”

Alfie Biola,
Bargain Booze,
Plymouth, Devon

McCoy’s

McCoy’s is KP Snacks’ largest brand, currently worth £120m, and is the number one ridge cut crisp. The McCoy’s range is growing at 12% and has a strong reputation for delivering full-on flavour. 

McCoy’s Grab Bags, available in a range of flavours including Paprika, Flame Grilled Steak, Salt & Vinegar and Cheddar & Onion, are growing by 6.4% and are four times bigger than the nearest competitor.  

McCoy’s Chips launched last year and was the second largest crisps, snacks and nuts innovation. It is now worth £8.6m, with one pack selling every five seconds. 

How to merchandise it

Retailers can grow their snack sales by making their fixtures easier to shop. As the top-50 bagged snacks make up 60% of sales, every fixture should include bestsellers such as McCoy’s. 

Retailers should block similar products together to make it as easy as possible for shoppers to find what they need and use second sites in high-footfall areas to drive impulse purchases.

Retailer view

“McCoy’s plays a key role in my range and is always one of the top performers. The brand’s ‘When Flavour Calls’ campaign has been great at driving sales, while launches like McCoy’s Chips has given us new products to excite shoppers with.”

Raj Aggarwal,
Spar,
Leicestershire

Quorn

Quorn, the delicious, nutritious protein source, and bestselling meat-free brand, is driving the growth of the UK’s meat-free market with its highest-ever level of brand investment in 2018.

In January, the brand launched a £14m, year-long campaign which includes 50 weeks of TV advertising.

Meat-free shoppers spend up to five times as much in-store as non-meat-free shoppers and meat-free is bought by 9.5 million consumers

How to merchandise it

Convenience retailers need to ensure they are reflecting consumer trends in their ranges as shoppers expect to find meat-free products in chillers and freezers. 

Quorn has launched a core range of five chilled and five frozen products for the convenience channel. These address different shopper missions and include ready meals, mince and meat-free pieces products and family favourites like nuggets, burgers and sausages.

Retailer viewpoint

“It’s not just vegetarians who are looking for meat-free products. A few years ago, most meat eaters wouldn’t really consider meat-free options, such as Quorn, but that’s all changed.

“There’s been a marked increase in demand for meat-free products and it’s not just among vegetarians.

Adam Vincent,
Dike and Son,
Dorset

Tes

Tes is dedicated to supporting the world’s teachers, enabling great teaching by helping educators find the tools and technology they need to excel and supporting them throughout their career.

On sale every Friday, RRP £3.50, Tes is essential weekly intelligence for the education professional.

Independent retailers account for 50% of Tes sales primarily by supplying schools in their
local communities. 

Publishers like Tes are driving cover prices of main titles and creating special issues. This has had a positive effect on revenues.  The current trend is that if consumers feel there is enough value they are happy to pay a higher price.

How to merchandise

Where possible give full facings, if that is not possible, make sure the top left corner of the magazine is seen as this generally has the logo and a key selling message.

Display Tes with similar weekly titles such as First News, New Scientist and New Statesmen.

Stocking a wide range allows consumer choice. Customers are more likely to come back to your store again if they know you have a wide selection of titles.

Retailer view

“We reserve copies for teachers who come in to pick them up every week. It’s good for repeat custom and they love it for the jobs and information it offers. What’s more, they come in to pick them up, which brings them into the store and they might buy something else too.”

John Vine,
Newsworld,
Shropshire

Warburtons

Warburtons is the No.1 Bakery brand, with more than 140 years of baking expertise. The category-leading Warburtons White Toastie loaf remains the bestselling wrapped bread product – with more than 97 million units sold in the past 12 months. 

Retailers need to recognise the importance of offering a variety of choices for consumers in bakery with a wide range. Warburtons six-pack Crumpets are the top product within bakery snacks, selling more than 42 million units in the past year. 

How to merchandise

Bakery is the most important reason shoppers visit convenience stores, so visibility is crucial for this category. Brands play an important part in wrapped bread sales, so it pays to make sure that there is good availability on key lines and that these are clearly signposted in order to drive traffic and spend. 

Retailers should use PoS to maximise seasonal occasions where wrapped bakery lines are popular, such as Easter. 

Retailer viewpoint

“Offering a wide range of fresh wrapped bakery products is crucial to meeting our customers’ needs when they enter our store.

“Warburtons White Toastie loaf and Crumpets have increased my sales and give my shoppers more choice within the category.”

Sandra Hand,
Nisa Local,
Lancashire