Tony Cristofaro, owner of Spar Landmark Place in Cardiff, Wales, says his food-to-go range and Easter line-up have been particularly popular, especially with busy commuters.

“Our food to go range is the main focus of our store and since a refit last year we’ve seen that popularity grow. Where we are located, opposite the Queens Street train station, we pick up a lot of commuter trade.

“The usual Easter favourites, like Mini Eggs and Crème Eggs, have also been doing really well but the new large Kinder Eggs have been the biggest success. They sell for £5 and they’ve exceed all expectations in terms of sales – they’ve been flying out of the shop even before the Easter holidays!

“I think the eggs have captured people’s imagination and children have been badgering their parents to get them one to eat there and then. I’ve got a son myself and I’ve been guilty of treating him to more than one before the Easter break.

“Our main trade comes from commuters but during the school holidays we are also very busy. Soft drinks is another big area for us. We’re expecting to see a lot more people coming into the store at around mid-day when the kids are off school.”

Successful NPD

Walkers Max Strong

“Walkers have released a few new products in the last few months but the Max Strong range has probably been the most successful for us. I think people like to try new things and experiment with different flavours.”

Walkers Max Strong were launched in UK in mid-January. The range of ridged crisps in spicy flavours are designed to appeal to beer lovers.

Available in three fiery varieties including Chilli & Lime, Hot Chicken Wings and Jalapeño & Cheese, the Max Strong range is available in sharing bag (150g, rrp £1.99) and grab bag formats (50g, rrp £0.80). A Jalapeño & Cheese Clip Strip Bag (90g, rrp £1.00) also launched to the independent trade in mid-March.

What’s hot: At the moment, soft drinks is performing the best for us.

What’s not: Our grocery range isn’t performing as well, I think because of our location and focus on food-to-go.