Tyson Convenience Foodservice and Anheuser-Busch Study Identifies Late
Afternoon and Evening Snacking Consumer Behaviors to Help Drive
Convenience Store Sales
Springdale, Ark. (June 29, 2015) – Convenience store operators can increase sales of prepared food
items by connecting late afternoon and evening snacking behaviors with purchases, according to a new
study commissioned by Tyson Convenience Foodservice in partnership with Anheuser-Busch.
“Snacking is a mega-trend,” said Kevin Miller, senior marketing manager, Tyson Convenience
Foodservice. “According to a 2014 Technomic snacking study, 51 percent of Americans snack twice a day
and 31 percent snack more frequently than they were just two years ago. As a result, the snacking
occasion has evolved from incidental to purposeful, creating opportunity for convenience store
operators to rethink their late afternoon and evening snack game plan.”
The study, which confirmed emotional needs – not just physical needs – are at the core of why people
snack, identified a variety of opportunities for convenience store operators to drive growth through
prepared food snack sales:
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Late afternoon/evening offers potential for incremental prepared food purchases – Although
convenience store traffic is highest during morning and lunch dayparts, the study showed half of
all recent convenience store snack purchases were between 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. Of those snack
purchases, however, only 22 percent included a prepared food item.
Consumers view snacks as an opportunity to reward themselves with indulgence – The study
showed that consumers are looking for late afternoon and evening snacks to be a reward and
indulgence. The research also indicated that compared to prepackaged snacks, prepared food
snacks in convenience stores more strongly fulfill that need.
Highlight fresh prepared food offerings to satisfy, but not fill up – According to the study, even
for snack purchases, prepared food quality and freshness were the most important attributes
consumers consider. In addition, snacks should be easy to consume on-the-go and satisfy
without overfilling.
Differentiate snack offering through linkage to beer sales – The study revealed only five
percent of recent convenience store beer purchases included a prepared food item, however
when they were purchased together, more than half of those purchases were consumed as a
snack. This indicates an awareness challenge between beer and prepared food at convenience
stores, but reveals an opportunity for operators to position prepared food offerings as a snack
to accompany beer.
Target millennial impulse buyers – Operators should concentrate resources to capture this
group’s attention with strongly branded signage, value-driven offerings and an emphasis on
“quick and quality” product attributes.
“Partnering with Anheuser-Busch tapped into our collective industry expertise and resources to provide
operators with valuable insights about consumer behavior to compete in the convenience store
marketplace,” said Miller. “These findings indicate operators have the opportunity to better
communicate their snack and prepared food offerings, as well as develop cross-purchasing programs if
they want to attract and maximize sales with today’s consumer.”
“This study gave us valuable additional insights on something we already know: That crossmerchandising beer with snacks helps drive additional revenue,” said CJ Watson, vice president – small
format at Anheuser-Busch. “Displaying items together gives retailers an opportunity to potentially
create occasions and capture more shopping missions. Displaying beer alongside the prepared food
items in the c-store can tap into the key snacking opportunities this study uncovered and capture
unplanned sales.”
The study results were based on a combination of online qualitative discussion groups and quantitative
research, as well as in-person interviews.
About Tyson Convenience Foodservice
Tyson Convenience Foodservice is a division of Tyson Foods, Inc., one of the world’s largest producers of
chicken, beef, pork and prepared foods that include leading brands such as Tyson®, Jimmy Dean® Ball
Park®, Hillshire Farm®, State Fair®, and Sara Lee® frozen bakery. Tyson Foods, Inc. provides a wide
variety of protein-based and prepared foods products and is the recognized market leader in the retail
and foodservice markets it serves, supplying customers throughout the United States. Visit
http://www.TysonConvenience.com for more information.
About Anheuser-Busch
For more than 160 years, Anheuser-Busch and its world-class brewmasters have carried on a legacy of
brewing America’s most-popular beers. Starting with the finest ingredients sourced from AnheuserBusch’s family of growers, every batch is crafted using the same exacting standards and time-honored
traditions passed down through generations of proud Anheuser-Busch brewmasters and employees.
Best known for its fine American-style lagers, Budweiser and Bud Light, the company’s beers lead
numerous beer segments and combined hold 46.4 percent share of the U.S. beer market. Budweiser and
Bud Light Lime Lime-A-Rita were named Brands of the Year for the Beer and the Spirits, Malt Beverages
and Wine categories, respectively, by Ace Metrix® in 2014. Anheuser-Busch is the U.S. arm of AnheuserBusch InBev and operates 16 local breweries, 17 distributorships and 23 agricultural and packaging
facilities across the United States, representing a capital investment of more than $15.9 billion. Its
flagship brewery remains in St. Louis, Mo., and is among the global company’s largest and most
technologically capable breweries. Visitor and special beermaster tours are available at its St. Louis and
five other Anheuser-Busch breweries. For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com.
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