It wouldn’t be a new year without another major retailer announcing that they’re going to conquer the convenience channel from a standing start. This year, we have not one but two contenders.
Asda you can understand. The stellar ambition of the Issa brothers is well known and you can see why they might think convenience is a quick and easy win. But B&Q? Come on now. That’s just insulting to both fellow retailers and to customers. Just because I bought a cordless drill from you 18 months ago, does that mean I’m happy to buy my lunch from you too?
The reason behind the latest peak in interest in convenience is the same reason as ever: money. The convenience market is flying, despite the monumental challenges of the last few years – and everybody wants a slice of that action. That’s understandable. What’s less understandable is how big retailers feel they can muscle in and take over in a channel that is all but foreign to them. Supermarket retailing is not like convenience retailing. The two channels sell similar product ranges but that’s where the similarities begin and end.
Running a convenience store, as every local retailer knows, is about much more than range. At the heart of every successful convenience store – and there are many of them – is a complex amalgam of community engagement, deep relationships, range, pricing, trust and a million other factors. Those don’t come quickly or easily, as everyone who has tried to conquer convenience has discovered.
And, as our cover story points out this month, the reason why convenience is so attractive and is growing so quickly is because the people already doing it – you! – are doing it so well. Talk to anyone who runs a chain of company-owned stores and they’ll tell you time and again that a chain run by a team of employed managers is always up against it when competing with a well-run owner-managed independent store. Heart and soul. Passion. Commitment.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some wonderful company-owned store managers – but there’s nothing to compare with a retailer who owns his or her own store and is there behind the counter every day of the week, alive to the opportunities, listening to customers, desperate to make sure his or her customers are happy.
Don’t forget, we’ve been here a hundred times before. Remember when Tesco Express was going to take over the world? And Amazon?
So, I would urge all independent retailers to take Asda and B&Q’s forays as a massive compliment. They want what you already have. But time and experience show that replicating your success is beyond even the biggest of them.
Antony Begley, Publishing Director, SLR
Here we go again…
It wouldn’t be a new year without another major retailer announcing that they’re going to conquer the convenience channel from a standing start. This year, we have not one but two contenders.
Asda you can understand. The stellar ambition of the Issa brothers is well known and you can see why they might think convenience is a quick and easy win. But B&Q? Come on now. That’s just insulting to both fellow retailers and to customers. Just because I bought a cordless drill from you 18 months ago, does that mean I’m happy to buy my lunch from you too?
The reason behind the latest peak in interest in convenience is the same reason as ever: money. The convenience market is flying, despite the monumental challenges of the last few years – and everybody wants a slice of that action. That’s understandable. What’s less understandable is how big retailers feel they can muscle in and take over in a channel that is all but foreign to them. Supermarket retailing is not like convenience retailing. The two channels sell similar product ranges but that’s where the similarities begin and end.
Running a convenience store, as every local retailer knows, is about much more than range. At the heart of every successful convenience store – and there are many of them – is a complex amalgam of community engagement, deep relationships, range, pricing, trust and a million other factors. Those don’t come quickly or easily, as everyone who has tried to conquer convenience has discovered.
And, as our cover story points out this month, the reason why convenience is so attractive and is growing so quickly is because the people already doing it – you! – are doing it so well. Talk to anyone who runs a chain of company-owned stores and they’ll tell you time and again that a chain run by a team of employed managers is always up against it when competing with a well-run owner-managed independent store. Heart and soul. Passion. Commitment.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some wonderful company-owned store managers – but there’s nothing to compare with a retailer who owns his or her own store and is there behind the counter every day of the week, alive to the opportunities, listening to customers, desperate to make sure his or her customers are happy.
Don’t forget, we’ve been here a hundred times before. Remember when Tesco Express was going to take over the world? And Amazon?
So, I would urge all independent retailers to take Asda and B&Q’s forays as a massive compliment. They want what you already have. But time and experience show that replicating your success is beyond even the biggest of them.
Antony Begley, Publishing Director, SLR
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