Published: May 6, 2018

At the NACS Convenience Summit Europe, attendees will tour forward-thinking stores

May 4, 2018

​ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The 2018 NACS Convenience Summit Europe(3-8 June) presents three opportunities for guided tours of innovative store formats and disruptive retail practices in Warsaw and London. Explore how retailers are reacting to the threat of rising sales from discounters, how you can cater to your target’s palette (canteen-style, restaurant-style or QSR-style) and how retailers are differentiating themselves in a crowded market of “sameness”.

For some convenience retailers, like Peter Batt, divisional managing director for Co-op, the store tours also offer an opportunity to spotlight new community-spirited initiatives that are shaking up the market.

“It's an incredibly exciting time for Co-op and we’re pleased to be able share our best practices with the delegates from the NACS Convenience Summit Europe. We’re proud to be leading the way when it comes to the convenience retail market, with a strategy that is based on the right store, in the right location. This approach ensures that the 2,600 stores in our portfolio meet the individual needs of the communities that they are based in.” Featured in NACS Magazine, the Co-op has been touted a community-led convenience retailer and is the U.K.’s fifth largest food retailer with sights set on becoming the U.K.’s leading convenience food retailer. In fall 2017, the Co-op was named Convenience Retailer of the Year in the Retail Industry Awards, a prestigious award for the grocery retail sector in the United Kingdom.

In addition to exploring successful blueprints for local community hubs and modern convenience stores like Co-op, delegates will also visit one of London’s oldest and largest food markets. With over 4.5 Million shoppers and visitors per year, you’ll see first-hand how all generations, all professions, and all demographics come together to enjoy their perfect lunch. 
Each tour includes a debrief package with insights.

View programme and register.

Highway Tour: Convenience and Fuel Retailing Store Visits 
Sunday 3 June, 2018, 08:30 – 15:30
Start from the Warsaw Marriott Hotel; Al. Jerozolimskie 65/79, 00-697 Warszawa, Poland

+ BP Piotr Y Pawel (19) > Supermarket cooperation
+ Lukoil Carrefour Express > C-store-chain cooperation
+ Lotos (31) 
+ Orlen (32) > Restaurant-style seating, Retail Execution
+ BP (33) > Canteen-style foodservice
+ Shell (34) > Multiple food touchpoints: Costa/Deli/BurgerKing
+ Orlen (35) > Upmarket design, open kitchen, children’s play area
+ Manufaktura > Shopping to eating. Food-service variety. Backside: FMCG/DIY shopping

Store Tours: The Booming Polish C-Store Sector of Warsaw
Monday 4 June, 2018, 12:30 – 16:30
Tuesday 5 June, 2018, 10:30 – 13:30
Start from the Warsaw Marriott Hotel | Al. Jerozolimskie 65/79, 00-697 Warszawa, Poland

Visit stores that will get you thinking about:

+ Serious food from canteen-style to restaurant-style to QSR-style 
Experience how different foodservice offers from canteen-style to restaurant-style to QSR-style, fit perfectly into large or small formats with one common goal: to feed the crowd.

+ What if everybody does ‘discount’? 
See first-hand how convenience retailers successfully react to the threat of rising sales from discounters: Avoiding copycats and going premium!

+ Delivering the Last Mile
Ecommerce is on the rise but delivering the last mile is tricky. Follow busy Varsovian urbanites on their daily quest to manage work, family, traffic and shopping. Discover solutions online-sales-deliveries, grocery and laundry) that are breaking through the clutter to fit neatly into consumers’ tight and unpredictable daily schedules.

+ Location, Location, Location
Discover location-tailored convenience in usual and unusual places to learn how location-optimized retail is helping some retailers to: sell more than 200 hot dogs per day at a petrol station; cater to multiple target groups by placing the store right in the middle of the buffer-zone between them.

+ The New Comfy
Going where the Millennials go: Learn why store design and maintenance are key in a fight for staying relevant. See what “The new comfy” looks like when “The old comfy” has become dated.

+ The Two-Door Concept
Learn how tearing down walls not only figuratively but literally can aid communication, customer-targeting and customer-engagement to grow sales—all while leveraging a convenience retail site’s most valuable asset: It’s location

Store Tours: London Showcases the Future of Convenience Retail 
Friday 8 June, 2018, 09:30 – 14:45
Start from London Hilton Bankside Hotel; 2-8 Great Suffolk St, London SE1 0UG

Explore tomorrow’s convenience and new ways of doing business:

+ The Supermarket of the Metropolis
It’s not about expanding footprint. See how one retailer is delivering high-volume-sales through a highly optimized assortment that’s tailored to the local store environment.

+ Surviving in a Sea of Sameness
Learn how established foodservice chains compete successfully in a “sea of sameness”—after everyone started selling coffee—through design, atmosphere and customer loyalty.

+ Millennials (and the rest of us following their lead…)
Visit outlets that cater the needs of Millennials through POS-design, healthy eating options, and quality-focused eating choices. (and see how Baby Boomers and GenX are following their lead.)

+ Differentiate or Drown
Experience how established chains fight the competition through micro-segmentation by joining the coffee-craze or by connecting empathically to their neighbourhood. Hear from an independent retailer and learn his secrets to winning against everyone else.

+ Disruptive Technology
Follow the daily tech-trek of urbanites, from charging their EV in the city via efficient yet playful touch-screen-ordering to mobile order and delivery.

+ One of London’s oldest and largest food markets (4.5 Million+ Shoppers Per Year)
Lunch is served: Visit one of London’s oldest and largest food markets with more than 4.5 Million diverse shoppers and visitors per year.

View programme and register.

http://www.convenience.org/Media/Daily/Pages/ND0504181_Touring-Innovative-European-Stores_NACS.aspx#.Wu942IgvwdU