Awais Ahmed, owner of Sunny’s Premier store in Stirling in Scotland, has spoken to Convenience Store this week about one of his most unusual - but still essential - lines.
The store recently posted on social media offering its shoppers the chance to ‘banish the morning blues’, which caught our attention. The post highlighted that it was listing the SoBear supplement, which was designed to counter the lingering effects of one too many before they’ve even started.
Awais took up the story: “We’re always looking online and on social media for new and unusual products we think our customers will be interested in. As soon as we spotted this one, we thought it was something worth trying in store.”
Morning support
SoBear is “built around DHM to support the breakdown of acetaldehyde - the toxic alcohol byproduct that causes ‘hangxiety,’ nausea and headaches,” the company’s website said.
This makes its jars of gummy sweets different to most of the other hangover ‘cures’ on the market, SoBear said, with its competitors focusing solely on rehydration.
Users simply take two of the sweets before bed, with the beneifts felt the next morning. Purchases online are restricted to bundles for monthly periods, but the beauty for Awais is his store’s ability to sell individual jars to needy shoppers.
“There can definitely be a bit of a ‘morning after’ basket!”
As you might expect, Awais said the shoppers he sees buying the gummies are also picking up other items to help them through tough mornings, which increases basket spend: “We definitely see customers picking up other drinks, snacks and convenience products alongside them. Things like energy drinks, soft drinks, crisps, sweets and quick food are common additions, so there can definitely be a bit of a ‘morning after’ basket!”
Social media
So far, the products have been a hit with Awais’ customers, he said. “Sales have been really good so far. New and unusual products tend to do particularly well with us, especially when we share them across our social media pages. Customers like coming in to see what’s new and trying products they haven’t seen elsewhere.”
Awais said all he really had to think about for the new product was where to put it in store: “We try to give new products a prominent position where customers will notice them rather than hiding them away on a shelf. A lot of the interest comes from younger adult customers who follow new products and trends online.
“That’s a big part of what we do at Sunny’s Premier. We’re constantly looking for new flavours, viral products, imports and products that customers might not be able to find in the usual supermarkets. We like being one of the first stores locally to get something new.”
Good margins
Of course, it would all be pointless if the margins weren’t there, but luckily, they are. “The margins are decent. For us though, it’s not always just about making the biggest margin on an individual product.
”Something different can bring customers into the shop, and they’ll usually pick up other items while they’re here too,” Awais added.
Next up for the store is a move further towards household lines – but the focus, Awais concluded, will always be the new and unusual. “We’ll keep expanding the range and bringing in new and unusual lines. We’ve also expanded into household and home essentials, which has been really popular with our customers.
“We’re always trying something different and listening to what people want to see in store.”
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