On Campus Convenience

San Jose State University added a second c-store, offering healthier and organic options to California students and teachers

Spartan Shops is betting that college students are the quint-essential convenience customers. The San Jose State University organization was already operating a c-store on campus — Village Market — when it opened another in June named Just Below, which is located “just below” some campus classrooms. There are also three nearby 7-Eleven stores in operation, one located just off the SJSU campus.

It may sound like convenience overload, but Just Below is filling in a needed gap and offering a unique twist for its California students and faculty, according to Ryan Ptucha, retail operations manager for Spartan Shops.

“We felt we were missing out on a large demographic of opportunity — those that want healthier and organic options,” said Ptucha. “We think we can pick up sales from students and faculty who go to downtown San Jose for those options. We want the business that we think is leaving campus.”

Bottom Line

◗ Only 20 percent of Just Below's mix is traditional c-store items.

◗ In 4,000 square feet, the store also houses a Jamba Juice and Peet's Coffee.

◗ 70 percent of its customers are San Jose State University students and faculty.

While the Village Market is more in line with a typical c-store, Just Below “isn't following in those traditional footsteps of neon lights, wire racks and Red Bull,” according to Ptucha. “We went, instead, for a much softer, organic feel,” he explained.

What that translates to in merchandising terms is a product selection that is only 10 percent to 20 percent “traditional c-store,” with no gas (because of its location), no alcohol and no tobacco.

“We don't think a college campus is the correct venue for alcohol and tobacco. This is one of the areas where the university definitely has an influence,” Ptucha explained. “We do have a large section of mainstream candy and things like Pop Tarts — we are right next to classrooms, after all.”

But its main focus is convenient versions of items more typically found at a store like Trader Joe's, as some have likened it. “We have a variety of vegan products and all-natural products, including frozen brands like Amy's and shelf-stable brands like Newman's Own,” Ptucha said. Just Below customers will find meatless jerky, organic cotton-candy, and gluten-free bagels, to name a few. And the store welcomes requests from its predominantly student and faculty customers.

“Because we're going a different route, we're soliciting opinions constantly,” Ptucha said. “We were open only a few days when customers started asking for gluten-free breads, so we went out and immediately brought them in. We're reaching out to students and faculty through Twitter and Facebook, and asking customers in the store to tell us what they want.”

In the 4,000-square-foot space, the store also houses a Jamba Juice, Peet's Coffee and a deli. Just Below opens at 7 a.m. with breakfast offerings that include prepared bagel sandwiches. “We're doing them with eggs, fresh cheese, uncured bacon with no nitrates, vegetarian pesto spinach and tomatoes — that gives you an idea,” Ptucha noted.

But lunch is when the deli does most of its business. “We're getting whole loaves of breads and slicing them ourselves. We're getting in fresh cheeses and meats every day. It's hard to find that in a c-store,” Ptucha said.

In the evening, the store stays open until 10 p.m., in sync with night class schedules. “Students and faculty will come in at 6:45 p.m. to pick up a sandwich before 7 o'clock classes start,” Ptucha said, noting the store stays open for those who want to pick something up on the way home.

In addition to being under the classrooms, the store is also situated between two campus parking garages, so it picks up a lot of business from commuter students, according to Ptucha. For this reason, Just Below expects to do well with an emphasis on hot food, which includes pastrami and BBQ chicken. Its offerings also expands to take-home meal options like meat loaf with organic mashed potatoes, vegetarian dishes like “meatless” chicken nuggets and rotisserie chickens.

“This is primarily for our customers on their way home to grab and go,” said Ptucha. “It's in the theme of having something for everyone — organic and healthier options.”

SERVING THE CUSTOMER

Ptucha explained the most interesting feedback the store has heard from customers is “that they feel like we're responding quickly to their needs,” and that includes the faculty on-campus.

The store decided to go with a soup bar, utilizing small-batch, hand-cut vegetable soups from Heinz after taking advice from a hospitality management professor on-campus.

“We like to get inside the heads of the resources we have right here, get our professors actively involvedwhere it makes sense,” said Ptucha. “We like to make sure we're partnering with them because we're partnering with the university.”

To get the faculty to feel just as much a part of its customer focus as the students, Just Below displayed classroom consideration from the start.

“During construction of the store, the jackhammer noise disrupted several classrooms so we did a Jamba Juice sampling event for everyone in the building, and then gave out coupons to the professors for a free deli sandwich and a drink,” Ptucha explained. “It was a small gesture, but it got them to come in with good vibes.”

Non-food items are also provided with both students and faculty in mind, and include test supplies such as Scantron forms and blue books, as well as pens, notebooks, headache medication and even organic hand sanitizers made with organic lemon.

The store also maintains an environmentally friendly image through LEED-certified fixtures. “We went with fixtures that are all made out of recycled wood. We have light wood floors and dark wood counter facings and countertops that are scratch-resistant,” explained Ptucha. “We started there, trying to do whatever we could to distinguish our image.

To conserve paper and printing, the store uses flat-panel screens as menu boards at its deli, and at the entrance to advertise campus events.

Since 70 percent of its customers are San Jose State University students and faculty, Just Below is closed for holiday seasons that coincide with school breaks, such as at Thanksgiving and Christmas, but remains open during winter and summer sessions.

“Basically, any time there are students and faculty on campus, we will be open,” said Ptucha.