Meet the growing trends of on-the-go consumption
Convenience shopping in the UK is a dynamic and evolving landscape
After the pandemic and the new normal of working from home, local convenience stores thrived due to ‘little and local’ shopping preferences. Consumers prioritize quick, easy shopping trips for top-up groceries, snacks and ready-to-eat meals. This convenience often outweighs the slightly higher prices compared to supermarkets.
Moreover, convenience stores offer diversified services, including parcel collections and returns, hot food counters, bakery and cash machines, making them one-stop shops for busy individuals in the local area. This dramatic change in shopping behaviour has significant implications for the physical store, such as assortment, store layout and format.
Efficient solutions for faster-moving convenience products
To meet the growing demand for convenience food and beverages, assortments are now populated with on-the-go options such as pre-cut fruit, salads, sushi, smoothies, coffee drinks, breakfast items and even hot food catering to different needs throughout the day. In the last decade, products marketed with convenience claims have almost doubled and currently represent 18 percent of food and drink launches worldwide.
Given the demand for on-the-go products shifts throughout the day from breakfast to lunch and dinner, stores need to find ways to stock and merchandise a large number of items in often limited shelf space. Solutions such as shelf trays and glide mats used on flat or angled shelves adaptable to different packaging formats are perfect for products that require refrigeration and have often shorter shelf lives. Pusher functionalities are also effective, encouraging shoppers to choose products from the front of the shelf which helps to control expiry dates. Chillers with rotating shelves enable quick and efficient restocking whilst keeping products front-faced at all times.
HL's offers several solutions for on-the-go products. To find out more, please browse our products.
