A HIM study into the effects of the recession on shoppers' buying habits has found that 13% of the UK adult population will be staying at home more in the next 12 months to entertain friends and family.

And when the sun shines there's one thing Brits love to do - BBQ.

It's important to make your shop seen as a destination for an impromptu BBQ and there are plenty of ways to do that.

Sizzling tips:

Offer special BBQ value packs of meat by teaming up with a local butcher, or packs of buns and baps through a local baker.

Create theatre and fun

in-store with sampling of sausages or burgers.

Offer a linked promotion where customers buy packs of sausages or burgers and get the buns free.

Further HIM research shows that 37% of off licence shoppers (HIM's SOLTrack 2009) say they are more likely to visit their off licence to stock up for summer activities. This means that ensuring good availability of key lines of chilled lager, cider, rosé and white wine is vital - it must be chilled as most customers will consume their purchase within the next hour.

And don't forget about ice. This is a high-margin category which will fly off the shelves in summer, but availability again is crucial.

And what about the other essential BBQ accessories such as charcoal, firelighters and gas? You could offer a free gas refill with every purchase over £10 to create a footfall driver, or offer disposable BBQs, paper plates, napkins and so on.

It is important to merchandise your BBQ offer together in one destination, or zone in-store with clear signage to direct customers.

Don't forget to communicate your offer to your customers either through leaflets delivered to your local catchment (24% of those customers who receive leaflets say that they read leaflets all the time and 34% would like to know about the range of products on offer) or external signage to remind customers that your shop is the place to go for BBQ items.

As many as 44% of c-store customers feel that their local store does not integrate into the local community, so why not be the first to have a BBQ to raise money for a local charity or school? This builds good relations with the local community while building awareness of your range of products.