Customer Missions: Food to Go & Meal Deals

Meal deals aren’t exactly new when it comes to retail sales mechanisms. Some of the multiples have been offering meal deals for almost a decade now, with the likes of Boots and the Co-operative Group getting their offering just right and expanding it regularly. And variety pays off, with HIM research showing that 23% of shoppers are willing to pay a higher price for a meal deal if there was a wider range of products.

In fact, according to Boots, its meal deal offering is so large that you would need a stadium 94 times bigger than Wembley, filled with people eating a different Boots Meal Deal, before any two people would have exactly the same combination of products.

It’s unlikely an independent retailer can compete with this, but they can make sure shoppers have enough choice to keep them interested.

Mohammed Islam of Day Today Wallyford in Edinburgh has a lunchtime and evening meal deal, and while the overall number of combinations he has may not need a mega stadium, they are a crowd pleaser. “Customers simply don’t have the time to think of and cook a full meal, so meal deals represent an easy option that is healthy and good value,” he says.

Mohammed utilises his extensive chiller space to offer a strong evening meal offering with plenty of meat and sides dishes to offer variety. “Shoppers don’t want the same thing every night, so by offering a few different options they will come back to you a couple of times a week. They rarely just buy the meal deal they’ll also pick up some snacks and something to drink so it boosts basket spend as well.”

Bedfordshire Nisa retailer Kishor Patel is a big advocate of meal deals, and focuses on the lunchtime offering. “The traditional meal deal option of a sandwich, packet of crisps and soft drink is still the most popular with customers, but there’s no harm in varying your offer otherwise customers will grow tired of it,” he says.

Kishor believes that meal deals have a dual benefit of attracting more customers and improving loyalty. “As well as generating more footfall, offering meal deals keeps you at the forefront of consumers’ minds,” he says. “If they know they can get a quick meal deal at your store, they will keep coming back.”

Concentrate on one area

When space is at a premium, catering for breakfast, lunch and dinner can be tricky. Tim Ellis of Momentum Instore marketing agency says it’s better to do one meal well to start with, rather than do all three poorly.

“Multiples have the space to stock everything from a freshly baked croissant for breakfast to a premium king prawn salad for dinner,” he says. “Convenience stores, however, need to be clever with their space and ensure they are giving their core target customers what they want, rather than trying to cater for everyone. Spreading yourself too thinly could be a dangerous tactic.”

Ellis believes that independent retailers should first stick to the lunchtime market, with a small breakfast offering for those on the go. “We would recommend that c-stores focus primarily on the growing lunchtime market, with an emphasis on the quick ‘grab and go’ customer,” he says. “A grab-and-go breakfast market is also emerging at the moment, with the launch of Weetabix breakfast drinks and a variety of breakfast biscuits for those running late for a train, or on their way to the office or a meeting.”

With more retailers embracing hot food to go, breakfast is the area in which convenience stores are most likely to be able to take on the multiples, with the quick service in a c-store making them the perfect morning stop-off.

It doesn’t have to be a big offering, either. Some retailers offer a bacon buttie and coffee, while others keep it simple with juice and porridge pots for those more health-conscious consumers.

Sid Ali of Nisa Mintlaw in Aberdeen agrees that there is huge opportunity in the breakfast on-the-go sector, but believes it has yet to reach its potential and lays down a challenge to the manufacturers. “We’re stocking more breakfast on-the-go products, including the Weetabix breakfast drink which has been very popular thanks to the £1 promotional price and brand awareness, but I still don’t think any manufacturer has got their breakfast on-the-go offering right yet,” he says. “There hasn’t been one product that is synonymous with the meal. The one that comes up with that will be very successful.”

Evening meal success

When it comes to evening meals, Ellis notes that shoppers are increasingly expecting quality food. “There is a growing trend for couples and families to make more time to dine together, and along with this has come a shift towards more premium produce,” he says.

Time-pressed shoppers are also after a quick, easy and low-cost evening meal solution. Laura McLean, manager of Eurospar Cullybackey in Northern Ireland, offers a traditional meal deal menu for customers, and has developed a value offering for evening meals which comprises a ready meal and two sides for £5.

Sales have been impressive, she reports. “Customers come in after work not knowing what they want for dinner,” she says. “But they do know that they don’t want to spend too much on it, especially mid-week when they’re not looking to treat themselves. The £5 meal deal works really well as they pick up that at a value price as well as other items and feel they’re getting a decent meal at a good price.”