7-Eleven Australia – Leaders in Convenience Food
7-Eleven Australia is continuing to lead the industry through its ongoing focus on disrupting customer perceptions of what food on the go in the convenience sector can offer.
According to the new 7-Eleven Area Lead for Food, Emma Metcalf King, overseas consumers have accepted convenience stores as credible options for quality, great value food on the go. However, here in Australia there’s still work to do outside of the traditional products such as hot pastry.
“In places such as Japan, the UK, USA and Scandinavia, convenience and fuel station outlets are right up there for consumers as food destinations. They know they can get a premium food offer at a good value price where and when they want it,” Ms Metcalf King said.
“Here in Australia, 7-Eleven has certainly led the way in establishing convenience as the place to go for a good quality, top value coffee, sweet treat or a delicious handmade sandwich.
“A lot of commitment and focus has gone into establishing that credibility with consumers.”
Ms Metcalf King highlighted how 7-Eleven has a proven track record of changing customer perceptions of service station and convenience store food.
“If you take coffee for example, 7-Eleven has invested over more than a decade to continually improve the offer, and presentation of hot drinks in our stores, and to drive consumer awareness and trial,” she said.
“In 2009 our coffee was a powdered offer and was only selling about nine cups a day. It takes a real vision and commitment in the long term to invest in machines, product and merchandising to deliver a credible alternative to cafes and quick service restaurants from a low base like that.
“But by focusing on ensuring that the quality of the offer was there, and that customers were being told about the offer both through advertising and by store team members, volumes started to grow hitting more than 150 units per store per day in five years.
“From there, promotions and giveaways that encouraged customers to try a cup and the easy add on purchases helped grow 7-Eleven into the powerhouse in the coffee market it is today. We sell more than 80 million cups a year, and we’re continuing to invest to grow even further.”
Over the last decade, the business has also invested growing its sandwich, sushi and salad categories. Today 7-Eleven is ready to invest in new areas to grow.
“While we’re not as far in our journey for food as we are for coffee, we’ve got a solid foundation, and have made steady progress,” Ms Metcalf King said.
“We’ve continually invested in not just the range and quality of our food offer, but also in consumer awareness and promotions to drive trial.
“Since 2015 we’ve grown our sandwich offer by 150 percent, and we’ve seen sushi sales quadruple.
“We’re focusing on healthy options, and on ranges that provide our customers with options across more meal occasions, particularly breakfast and lunch.”
Ms Metcalf King said that 7-Eleven is looking for partners that have the capability to help the brand grow food in the convenience sector.
“We’re always looking for like-minded partners who have the potential to help us push the boundaries of food in convenience,” she said.
“We want partners who are passionate about delighting customers with new products that make their everyday lives easier. Just as we are.
“The way we work with our supplier partners is with the goal of mutual growth and success.
We believe that it is important that we both benefit in the long term as we invest in creating customer behaviour change.
“I’m really excited about this next stage in our food story, as we build on the strong foundations we’ve established to really start to supercharge that consumer change.”