Age Matters

Segments differ by when and how often they typically shop at c-stores

With more than 149,000 convenience stores in the United States, it would be hard to find someone who has never stepped foot inside a c-store. In fact, the Convenience Store News 2013 Realities of the Aisle consumer study shows that shoppers stop in quite frequently — 73.1 percent of respondents indicated they shop at a convenience store at least once a week. In addition, 66.6 percent of the study’s participants said they typically shop at the same store each time.

Age plays a role in how often consumers shop at c-stores, with younger consumers shopping more often than older consumers. A majority of those between 18 and 44 years old shop at a c-store about once a week. However, 17.1 percent of 18- to 44-year-olds shop at a c-store almost daily. These results are in line with other recent studies that found Millennials are the most frequent c-store channel shoppers.

At the other end of the spectrum, older consumers tend to shop in convenience stores less often. Specifically, 22.1 percent of respondents aged 55-plus said they shop in a c-store an average of two or three times a month, and 12.8 percent average about once a month.

While the various age segments exhibit different behaviors, they do share some things in common —one being the reasons they go to a c-store in the first place. These reasons are to buy beverages, gasoline, snacks, lottery, candy, and prepared or fast food.

“I stop at a convenience store for gas, a pack of smokes, junk food, bottled drinks and sometimes lotto,” one New York City woman told CSNews, echoing the research findings.

The top five reasons, however, do shift somewhat depending on age.

“The younger crowd is consistently in our stores. They want their energy drinks,” said Jim DeFilippis, director of merchandising at Tonawanda, N.Y.-based NOCO Inc., operator of NOCO Express c-stores. “The older crowd is looking for the lottery and newspapers, and convenience items like milk and eggs.”

That doesn’t mean retailers should paint each demographic with a broad stroke, though.

“In some of our areas, the older crowd is in every day for their coffee and the ‘meet and greet’ with the employees. They know them by name,” DeFilippis added.

Not surprisingly, CSNews’ consumer study also found that different dayparts attract different shoppers. Notably, 40.9 percent of 35- to 44-year-olds and 33.7 percent of 45- to 54-year-olds typically shop at a convenience store between 6 a.m. and 8:59 a.m. On the other hand, 45.1 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds typically shop between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.

“I go to 7-Eleven every morning before work. I buy my coffee and a roll, muffin or something else to eat,” noted one 50-year-old shopper from Staten Island, N.Y. “I usually go to the same store every morning and see the same people every morning.”

Of all the products offered at a c-store, gasoline is the most purchased item across all age groups. In total, 70.8 percent of the consumers surveyed bought gasoline at a convenience store within the past month. Many consumers say they never venture from the forecourt to the inside of the store — a major hurdle retailers are always looking to overcome.

“Most stops I make are for gas,” noted a 49-year-old father of four from New York City. “Rarely, I’ll go in to buy a soda. I also get an aspirin or a paper, but very infrequently.”