6 Ways C-Stores Can Win the Dinner Daypart

Winning the dinner daypart requires more than simply extending lunch into the p.m. hours.

Convenience stores continue to make great strides in growing their foodservice business. Breakfast has always been the dominant daypart, and lunch sales have continued to climb.

The convenience factor is a big driver for the growth around breakfast and lunch sales, but it’s not the only factor. C-store success in these dayparts is also being fueled by convenience brands that have upped their game and are competing on far more than convenience alone, with an eye toward freshness, quality, value and other key considerations.

The dinner daypart, however, has fallen short of its potential. Just like many consumers stop on the way to work for breakfast, they also stop on the way home from work to pick up dinner. In most cases, they are driving right past the doors of a convenience store because it does not provide many of the key elements needed to make it a dinner destination. Focusing more on understanding and meeting consumers’ demands for the dinner daypart can reap tremendous benefits for c-store dinner programs.

Here are six opportunities to drive the dinner business in the c-store channel.

1. Elevate Fresh Food Quality

Most foodservice consumers expect restaurant-quality food and beverages for the dinner daypart. Frozen pizza and hot dogs are not going to get them to stop. There are simply too many options on the way home. The size of the menu is far less important than the quality of the products featured on that menu.

Certain staple categories must be represented as core offerings, with additional options available to satisfy family members or friends who have dietary constraints, possibly from GLP-1, or who simply prefer to eat healthier.

Categories such as pizza, chicken (either fried or rotisserie) or burgers are the best places to begin building a dinner menu. However, if any of these categories fail to provide a quality, differentiated product, customers will have little reason to visit. On the other hand, if these categories provide restaurant-quality food, they can drive dinner traffic while also increasing sales of sundries, fuel and other purchase.

2. Target the “I Don’t Want to Cook” Mission & Expand Family-Friendly Offerings

Customers today are cooking at home more often because the cost of going out has increased. This holds true not only across full-service restaurants, but also quick-service and fast-casual restaurants. But what’s important to note is customers aren’t eating at home because they necessarily want to.

In fact, in many cases, the fatigue of having to go to the supermarket, prepare the meal and then clean up after dinner becomes too much. As a result, customers are seeking quality, affordable alternatives that can be ready to pick up in 10 minutes and include family-friendly choices. Essentially, consumers are looking for fresh dinner ready for pick up on the way home.

They don’t necessarily want it from a drive-thru where they may have to wait and potentially end up getting the order wrong. Stopping at a convenience store to pick up a quality dinner at a great value is exactly what the consumer would prefer to do to help eliminate “dinner fatigue.”

3. Build Complete Meal Solutions

Reducing friction from meal purchases can transform the dinner daypart into a big win for convenience store foodservice.

Meal bundles simplify the ordering and pick-up process for consumers and also make the process easier to execute for the foodservice team. Beyond that, creating innovative complete meals for each night can be a great draw for hungry shoppers. Examples could include a family pasta night with fresh pasta, garlic bread, Caesar salad, dessert and beverages.

Another option could be a chicken dinner with rotisserie or fried chicken, two sides, rolls and beverages. Theme dinners such as movie night could involve pizza, wings, ice cream and beverages. Make it interesting and provide quality and consistency and watch the dinner daypart become a factor in foodservice revenue.

4. Optimize the Evening Food Experience

Many convenience stores are designed to satisfy the needs of the morning commuter, who is looking for breakfast solutions. The evening food experience must look a lot different to be successful. Digital ordering is a must to generate the experience that consumers can get in virtually any restaurant.

When they arrive at the store, they should walk into an environment where food is visible in nice displays with warm lighting and they should find that their order is ready. The order should be easy for them to identify, with a convenient pick-up area and a check-out experience that is fast and efficient. During dinnertime, the foodservice part of a convenience store should feel like a fresh market.

5. Compete on Value Rather Than the Lowest Price

Value is defined in many different ways. Competing strictly on price will not drive a reliable dinner business. Loyalty is crucial to driving stable customer traffic. This requires creative approaches to value, and consistency is nonnegotiable.

One bad dinner experience will take all the good will out of your loyalty program. An example of a staple value option would be family dinners for under $25. If you can provide quality options and be profitable doing it, you end up with a win-win opportunity.

Another creative approach includes meal subscriptions where customers pay in advance to be part of a monthly subscription and save money by participating. The subscription platform has done very well in breakfast foodservice. There is no reason it can’t be successful for dinner.

6. Treat Dinner as its Own Business Rather Than an Extension of Lunch

If convenience stores want their dinner business to be taken seriously, they must understand that consumers don’t want to experience lunch at dinner.

Here are a few options to consider for creating a stark differentiation between the lunch and dinner dayparts.

• Employ dedicated dinner staff, potentially in a different shirt or hat. • Complete the food production for dinner prior to dinnertime. • Ensure dinner displays are different and more upscale than lunch displays. • Introduce limited-time dinner offers that are only be available from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. • Merchandise products so that they appear enticing and similar to what one might find in a quality take-out restaurant.

*Bruce Reinstein is a senior partner with Kinetic12, a Chicago-based foodservice and general management consulting firm. The firm works with leading foodservice operators, suppliers and organizations on customized strategic initiatives as well as guiding multiple collaborative forums and best practice projects. They also engage as keynote speakers at operator franchise conferences and supplier sales meetings.

Their previous leadership roles in restaurant chain operations and at foodservice manufacturers provide a balanced industry perspective. Learn more at Kinetic12.com or contact him at [email protected].