As the industry gears up for growth in 2026, Convenience Store speaks to three innovative retailers about their plans and motivations for the year ahead.
1. Brand activations
Retailer Bobby Singh is planning to expand his brand activation strategy after previous events transformed his store into a destination, drawing customers from neighbouring towns.
The owner of the BB Superstore and Post Office says past activations have given him the confidence to improve and grow. “The more experience you get, the better you execute. We’re ready to make improvements based on what we learned in 2025,” he says.
“For a retailer, brand activations are a fantastic opportunity to boost footfall and enhance your business.”
For Bobby, activations aren’t just about showcasing products. “They’re about creating experiences that connect with customers and the community,” he says.
“Through these amazing activations, our store has evolved from a convenience store into a destination. People aren’t just coming from our local community, they’re travelling from nearby towns for the experience.
“Any activation, done correctly and marketed well, makes a real difference to your business.”
Looking ahead, he’s excited to build on last year’s successes and bring even more engaging experiences to Pontefract. “2025 was great for brand relationships and interactions and we’re looking to build on that. We’ve got bigger and better things planned for the store”.
Likewise, Nathalie Fullerton of One Stop Dumbarton Road is to continue filling her calendar with activation days. ”I have a number of activations lined up for the start of the year,” says Nathalie. “It’s something we’ll always continue because people get excited and really engage with us.
“They’re always wondering what we’re up to next and what freebies they might get. When you do these sorts of things, it just makes people happy. “
Nathalie adds that activation days also motivate her staff, as they break up the routine and stop work from feeling mundane. “It’s something different, and my staff really like getting involved and taking part,” she says.
2. Online delivery
In Manchester, One Stop retailer Priyesh Vekaria is stepping up his investment in q-commerce as he looks to strengthen his online proposition. “We’re very much aware of how q-commerce can drive sales in business,” says Priyesh. “If you get it right, your online turnover can exceed your in-store turnover.”
That potential was clear on Christmas Day, when sales at Priyesh’s store were evenly split between online and in-store channels.
“It was crazy,” he says. “The team was running around the store packing orders. We had four staff on, two focused on online deliveries and two serving customers in-store. It was a real eye-opener.”
The day delivered valuable insights, says Priyesh. “It was really interesting to see the demographics, the products being bought and different shopper missions throughout the day. It’s something that could be replicated on a normal trading day.”
Priyesh says the experience has reinforced the importance of using data to shape future strategy. “We’re leaning in and trying to understand those data sets better. We’ll take insights from Christmas and use them to improve our online offering and identify where we can create real points of difference.”
3. Food to Go
Nathalie is looking to introduce a Food to Go (FTG) concept. “I think it’s something that convenience stores don’t do enough of,” she says.
“We have a Greggs just a couple of doors down. We’re not trying to compete with them at all. Instead, we want to offer something different. We’ve looked at options like installing a pizza oven and serving proper, freshly made pizzas.
“We want to tap into the FTG market, particularly around home delivery. We already perform really well on deliveries, and with platforms like Just Eat proving how strong demand is, it makes sense to expand our food offering for customers at home as well as those coming into the shop.”
Nathalie says the biggest challenge will be consistency, especially when it comes to staffing: “If you build momentum and then the hot food counter has to close because someone doesn’t turn up, it can have a real knock-on effect”.
4. Protein push
The protein category is booming, driven by a surge in health-conscious consumers, according to Bobby and Priyesh.
“Protein is a massive thing for us,” says Bobby. “We’ve been speaking to some more suppliers to expand our protein range. Coming into 2026, we’re going to focus on making the most of our space by adapting our core range to what’s relevant”.
Bobby says consumers are becoming more health-conscious and are “very clear about what they want to consume”.
Priyesh has noticed “a lot of movement in protein consumption”. “It’s interesting because when you look at protein, it fits in all categories of your store,” he says.
He predicts the category is going to be a big growth opportunity in 2026, as well as healthier snacking.
5. Positivity and optimism
While 2026 is set to test the industry in new ways, staying positive and optimistic is key to growing stronger, explains Nathalie and Bobby.
“I’m nervous for the year ahead and the challenges it will bring.” says Nathalie. “There’s a lot of legislative changes that are going to affect us and people’s shopping habits are changing.
“But overall, I’m still optimistic. We’re strong enough to ride the wave and keep being consistent.”
Bobby says: “There are some things that are in our hands and some things that are not. I think sometimes we let the challenges overcome us and we end up in a bit of a limbo. You keep thinking about the challenges, but the reality is you can only do so much about certain things.
“There’s so much you can do yourself and that’s what brings growth and makes you bigger and better. Don’t take that foot off the pedal and keep taking that step forward.”
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