Fueled by Opportunity

As a leading seller of motor fuels in all the markets in which it operates, QuikTrip customers in metro Atlanta may be surprised to find the convenience store chain’s newest site is missing one offering traditionally associated with the c-store operator: fuel.

QuikTrip Corp., winner of the 2015 Convenience Store News Retailer Innovator of the Year award, is testing a non-fuel concept as part of the company’s long-term strategy to grow and serve non-traditional market segments, according to Chuck Barton, vice president of marketing.

Located at the intersection of Peachtree and 6th streets in Atlanta, the new c-store sans gas is the first of its kind for QuikTrip since the late 1970s, when the company tested a similar concept in its hometown of Tulsa, Okla.

The demand for convenience in metro areas has grown since that first experiment, leading QuikTrip to believe the time was right to try the concept once again.

“We saw an opportunity to expand the QuikTrip brand into other areas of the Atlanta market we have not historically been able to reach,” Barton told CSNews. “These sites would not allow fuel, which in the past we were unwilling to compromise. But with our increased focus on foodservice, we felt now was the time to test this concept.”

With its QT Kitchens made-to-order food and beverage program, the retailer is doing its part to make convenience stores a fresh-food destination for consumers.

NO FUEL, NO PROBLEM

With a densely populated downtown footprint, Atlanta is QuikTrip’s largest market. The 700-plus-unit chain operates a total of 127 stores here. The Peachtree and 6th property fit the bill in terms of criteria needed to run a non-fuel convenience store, according to Barton.

Boasting 3,500 square feet and open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the site is a little more than half the size of QuikTrip’s typical Gen 3 store model. Like other Gen 3 stores, it puts QT Kitchens — QuikTrip’s propriety foodservice offering — at the forefront. In fact, despite the store’s smaller size, this QT Kitchens is twice as large as the traditional footprint.

An expanded menu includes: a coffee bar, fountain drink dispensers, flatbreads, smoothies, frozen drinks, breakfast burritos, pizzas and toasted sandwiches. This location is the first to feature made-to-order toasted subs, Barton shared.

“QuikTrip already attracts customers from all walks of life, [but] we felt like this was a great opportunity to get our products and services into an area of the market that was underserved by our brand,” the marketing chief explained.

The only product category at this location that is much smaller than a standard QuikTrip store is beer; the mix here focuses on smaller packages and craft beer. But otherwise, the store carries the same merchandise as a standard QuikTrip store, noted Barton.

Aesthetically, however, this QuikTrip is “completely different” from the brand’s standard store in terms of merchandise layout and design. For example, the sales floor layout incorporates smaller gondolas and additional open-air coolers arranged to fit the smaller footprint. Additionally, the ceilings are two stories high with an open warehouse/industrial look.

QuikTrip’s in-house design team and sales department collaborated to arrive at the design for this non-fuel location. With all the decisions made internally, Barton said it was a quick process.

IS THIS JUST THE BEGINNING?

There is no doubt fuel is a significant traffic driver for a convenience store site and while Barton acknowledges this fact, he enthusiastically explained that QuikTrip plans to counteract this “with good food and great customer service!”

Thus far, the new store has gotten a very positive initial response from the neighborhood.

QuikTrip does not currently have another city or market in mind for further testing the non-fuel store concept. Still, the retailer continues to look for such opportunities.

In the meantime, those who live and work in metro Atlanta can reap the benefits of QuikTrip’s “convenience, value and good food,” Barton exclaimed.

“QuikTrip already attracts customers from all walks of life, [but] we felt like this was a great opportunity to get our products and services into an area of the market that was underserved by our brand.”
— Chuck Barton, QuikTrip Corp.