ALEXANDRIA, Va. – NACS has published a new online toolkit for retailers that shares eight easy, low-cost and proven examples of how convenience store operators can successfully grow their healthy offer and increase sales of better-for-you items.
Through the NACS reFresh initiative, the new online Ideas That Work to Grow Better-for-You Sales toolkit is one of a growing collection of resources, infographics, videos, podcasts and NACS Magazine articles that share examples of how convenience stores can successfully increase sales of better-for-you items and deliver healthier options to their customers. This toolkit, created by NACS and Cornell University’s Food and Brand Lab, shares convenience store-specific examples of evidence-based practices.
“Continued growth in sales of healthier, nutritious foods underscores the need for new strategies that capitalize on changes in consumer demand,” said NACS Vice President of Strategic Industry Initiatives Jeff Lenard. “NACS is leading the effort to create and communicate new opportunities for convenience retailers to both expand their selection of better-for-you offers and grow their business.”
The NACS reFresh initiative provides valuable insights about the contributions convenience stores are delivering to the communities they serve. Through reFresh, convenience retailers are discovering new ideas that enhance their operations and communication efforts to showcase the industry’s positive business practices. NACS also is developing partnerships with groups that share similar values, such as Cornell University, to foster best practices and make a difference.
“There is one more critical element to emphasize: The convenience store industry shares more ideas than any other retail channel. For this project, retailers allowed NACS to test key insights and share the results with other retailers who can determine how these findings will improve their own operations,” Lenard said, adding that NACS and Cornell will continue to build the online toolkit and share new data as it becomes available.
The Food and Brand Lab was created by Professor Brian Wansink, a leader in Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. Food and Brand Lab research has driven the creation of the USDA’s Smarter Lunchrooms Movement and the Grocery Retail Scorecard. The lab’s research has also been reported in dozens of magazines, newspapers, books and television news programs.
Lenard encouraged retailers interested in working with NACS to test new ideas and explore partnerships to contact him at jlenard@nacsonline.com.
More information on the reFresh initiative is at nacsonline.com/refresh.