Shoppers are demanding that convenience stores get even more ‘convenient’, according to new research from him! research & consulting. When asked what the most important thing is to them when shopping in convenience stores the number one response is ‘convenience’ (49%), followed by price (26%), then quality (23%) and service (just 2%).

“Our latest research has shown that the need for retailers to deliver a ‘convenient’ experience has exploded in the last 6 months (see summary below). Last July just 40% of shoppers mentioned the important of convenience, now that figure is 49%”, commented Katie Littler, Communications Director at him!

him! recently identified a new breed of grocery shopper, which they’ve called ‘Generation C’ (C for Convenience). Littler said: “Generation C has evolved from Generation P who were primarily price driven. Generation C expect good prices but they also demand ultimate convenience. Grocery shopping is already an inconvenience for Generation C so they expect retailers to be doing all they can to get the products they need into their hands in the easier, most stress-free way possible.”

It’s no surprise that this demand for ultimate ‘convenience’ is most prevalent in a convenience store environment. Compared with the 49% who said that convenience was most important in c-stores, only 23% mentioned ‘convenience’ when shopping in a supermarket and 12% in discounters, where price is the most important factor to shoppers

The data is taken from him!’s new ‘Convenience Barometer’ which interviews a nationally representative sample of UK adults every month.

Which of the following is most important when shopping in a convenience store:

Which of the following is most important when shopping in the following channels: