As days become longer and temperatures across the UK start rising there are plenty of reasons for shoppers to begin emerging and enjoying the sun, writes HIM’s Ruth Cousins. The long-awaited summer months are finally in sight and it’s time for retailers to get ready for the chaos that could be just around the corner!

More than half of all retailers that we spoke to earlier this year said they usually see more than a 10% uplift on sales during summer and, as the Met Office last year predicted that 2016 will be hottest on record, it is imperative that convenience store shelves are fully stocked with all the summer essentials.

One central category to this particular time of year is soft drinks. As many as 90% of retailers we spoke to said that soft drinks are most important when driving sales during the summertime. 
So how do you keep these shoppers happy? 
Those who we spoke to who buy soft drinks 
for instant consumption said that the most important factors to them when buying were 
pack size, brand and having ‘my usual product’. Therefore, ensuring that your top-selling brands are in stock is crucial to driving shopper satisfaction and loyalty.

Next up flying off the shelves over the summer months is ice cream. With more than half of retailers saying it is an important sales driver, ice creams could be a great opportunity for making up for any losses that may have occurred throughout the year due to poor weather.

Again, the success of your summer sales within this category will depend on availability. Keeping your freezers well stocked with a wide variety of leading ice cream brands will have shoppers visiting time and again.

The barbecue is one summer ritual that most Brits find hard to resist. With the weather here so temperamental, convenience stores can become heavily relied on for last-minute essentials as shoppers head straight to small stores the minute the sun makes an appearance.

Nearly 40% of shoppers HIM spoke to plan on hosting a BBQ this summer. A good weather forecast will be the deciding factor for more than half – so let’s all keep our fingers crossed for sun, sun, sun!

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