What’s in Your Cooler? Refreshing Choices. Optimal Equipment.

By Meline Beach

The summer season sees a rise in demand for chilled beverages and refreshing snacks, particularly in the convenience and gas (C&G) channel, favoured by on-the-go consumers. With increased travel, outdoor activities, and rising temperatures, summer presents an ideal time to fill your coolers with a variety of new and classic items that cater to your customers’ preferences and enhance sales opportunities.

Meeting Customer Demand

Customers frequent C&G retailers expecting a quick and satisfying solution to quench their thirst or hunger. Providing a variety of popular items such as bottled water, sodas, energy drinks, juices, and iced teas can cater to diverse tastes and preferences. Additionally, offering a range of chilled snacks like yogurt, cheese sticks, and fresh fruit cups can attract health-conscious consumers.

Airways General Store in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario offers deli meats, sliced cheeses, yogurts, and salads as part of their chilled product offering. In the summer, they add Caesar salad bag kits and fresh fruit. They also stock their cooler with Kombucha, a traditional fermented black tea drink, flavoured with fruit, spices or other ingredients.

Stocking a mix of national brands and local favourites can appeal to a broader customer base. For instance, including locally produced beverages or regional specialties can create a unique selling point and attract customers looking for something different.

Reid, who has owned Airways General Store for over 25 years, is a big proponent of supporting local suppliers. Bloom Kombucha Co., based out of Sault Ste. Marie, is a local micro-brewery that prides itself on its small, artisanal batches with quality ingredients. Of the six different flavours sold at Airways General Store, blueberry maple is the most popular.

“It’s made with local maple syrup,” says Reid, who’s noticed her customers have shown increased interest in healthy, fresh options. “We also purchase produce direct from local farmers markets and grocery stores to ensure freshness.”

Items like coconut water, low-sugar iced teas, and natural fruit juices are becoming increasingly popular. Protein-rich snacks like Greek yogurt, hard-boiled eggs, and protein shakes attract health-conscious customers. Clearly labelling these healthier options and providing nutritional information can help guide customers in making better choices, thereby enhancing their shopping experience and building brand loyalty.

Zevia Soda is an innovative beverage brand sold throughout Canada and the United States. Positioned to appeal to today’s modern consumer seeking better-for-you options, Zevia offers a portfolio of zero sugar, zero calorie, naturally-sweetened beverages made with plant-based ingredients, no artificial sweeteners, and are Non-GMO Project verified, gluten-free, kosher, vegan, and zero sodium.

“Younger generations avoid sugar and artificial ingredients in a big way,” says Alison O’Donnell, general manager and vice president of sales, Zevia Canada. “Traditional soda has 32 grams of sugar per can – more than an entire day’s recommended intake! Zevia offers an alternative to full-sugar or aspartame-sweetened pop in a convenient single can format for people on the go in need of delicious refreshment.”

Currently distributed through Core-Mark, Zevia sleek can singles are available in four flavours: Cola, Creamy Root Beer, Ginger Ale, and Orange.

“While Zevia six-packs have been available in the natural aisle of traditional grocery for over 10 years, we did not have a single can convenience solution before now,” says O’Donnell. “Cola, Creamy Root Beer, and Ginger Ale are our top three flavours.”

As a non-consumable cooler item, Airways General Store also stocks up on worms – available year-round for fishing enthusiasts.

Ensuring Quality and Freshness

Ensuring the quality and freshness of the products in your cooler is crucial. Regularly rotating stock and monitoring expiration dates prevent the sale of stale or spoiled items, which can damage your store’s reputation.

Investing in dependable refrigeration equipment and adhering to proper maintenance procedures is essential for maintaining optimal product temperatures. This not only preserves product quality but also improves the visual appeal of the cooler, making it more attractive to customers.

Chris Midbo, national accounts manager at Western Refrigeration, highlights the importance of appropriate equipment for success.

He notes, “The best coolers for convenience stores are walk-in coolers for their diverse range of beverages, including standard sodas, water, energy drinks, specialty water, ‘good for you’ beverages, dairy, juices, and more. Walk-in coolers look great with LED lighting and multiple doors in a row. They’re also back-loaded with slanted shelves which enable products to self-front, resulting in efficient merchandising and labour savings. Walk-in coolers also provide back-wall cold storage for overstock. Beyond beverages, the best place for deli sandwiches, fruit and veggie trays is in open refrigerated cases. These items are higher priced but also higher margin and therefore should be featured in a high impulse area to increase sales on key items.”

Midbo also emphasizes the benefits of modern cooler designs. “Our coolers use the most up-to-date refrigeration gases that are environmentally friendly. We design coolers to give the most merchandising space without having excessive storage and dead areas that do not need refrigeration. Efficiencies are key.”

In terms of maintenance, Western Refrigeration’s coolers have self-closing doors. With proper maintenance, which usually means cleaning the gaskets, door tracks, and other areas, self-closing doors should not be an issue.

Reid incorporates routine walkarounds as part of her staff training to ensure all cooler doors are closed to avoid spoilage.

“The key area for any refrigeration unit is airflow to ensure it runs at the proper temperature,” says Midbo. “All refrigeration units contain a compressor, with condenser fans drawing air into the compressor area to cool the unit during operation. Dust from the air accumulates on the condenser fan, requiring regular inspection and cleaning. Additionally, it is essential to check for spills and clean them as required, and to wipe and clean the door gaskets every few months.”

As for innovations, Midbo says there are many different size options to meet various applications, including height, width, and finishes to help merchandise the product and enhance sales.

Enhancing Impulse Purchases, Marketing, and Promotion

Strategic positioning, effective marketing, and promotions can significantly enhance the value of products in your cooler. Utilizing in-store signage, digital screens, and social media to promote new arrivals, special offers, and seasonal favourites can draw attention to the cooler and increase sales.

Strategically placing well-stocked coolers near the back of the store can boost impulse sales with a view of other items on display. Highlighting promotional offers, such as discounts on multi-packs or bundling drinks with chilled snacks, can further stimulate impulse sales. For example, a “buy one, get one free” offer on bottled water or soda with a fruit cup or sandwich can entice customers to make additional purchases they hadn’t initially planned.

Reid leverages Facebook posts with photos to promote new products to friends and followers, as well as in-store signage to announce locally sourced products. She’s looking to expand in-store signage to include hanging ceiling signs to help guide in-store traffic more efficiently.

The range of products in your cooler during the summer and the quality of your equipment are crucial. A well-stocked and strategically managed quality cooler can meet the increased demand for chilled refreshments, enhance impulse purchases, and cater to diverse customer preferences. By focusing on quality equipment and promoting a wide range of options, retailers can maximize sales and customer satisfaction. As we move through the summer months, ensuring that your cooler is a focal point of your store can lead to significant business growth and a loyal customer base.

 

Meline Beach is a Toronto-based communications practitioner and frequent contributor to Convenience and Carwash Canada. In addition to freelance writing, Meline provides communications and public relations support to businesses across Canada. She can be reached at www.mlbcomms.ca.