As more and more consumers resume their morning commutes, c-store retailers need to double down on recapturing sales in the breakfast daypart.
Nearly two-thirds of consumers worked from home at some point during the pandemic, which put pressure on c-store breakfast sales, according to Technomic’s Q1 2022 C-Store Consumer Marketbrief. Consumers’ gradual return to the office, which includes hybrid work-from-home schedules, shines a spotlight on the intense competition c-stores face in recapturing their share of the breakfast market.
In order to capture more sales and attract new customers, c-stores will need to become a more top-of-mind foodservice and snacking destination, satisfying multiple need states and shopping occasions, the report noted.
For c-stores to continue to compete with quick-service restaurantsand coffee focusing on the right products can help the segment compete more effectively.
Hot grab-and-go items, in particular, are appealing for the breakfast daypart. Consumers overwhelmingly say they want items such as breakfast sausage, breakfast pizza, breakfast sandwiches and handhelds to be available as hot, grab-and-go items. In addition, 61% of consumers said c-stores should offer a greater number of hot handheld breakfast foods, Technomic’s Q1 2022 C-Store Consumer Marketbrief report found.
Among the trending breakfast items in foodservice are handheld chicken-and-waffle sandwiches, especially those that have unique flavor twists, according to Technomic’s 2021 Breakfast Consumer Trend Report.
A longtime Southern-style favorite, chicken and waffles has been offered on menus for years now—and is a customer favorite. Increasingly, however, portable varieties of this menu powerhouse have been popping up, the report found.
Tyson Foodservice offers a range of breakfast products ideally suited to satisfy these consumer trends. Their line of butcher-wrapped chicken sandwiches, for example, include the Tyson® Chicken n’ Waffle Sandwich and the Tyson® Hot n’ Spicy Chicken n’ Waffle Sandwich, both of which are Food and Beverage Innovations (FABI) Award recipients for 2022.
Among the added benefits these items offer are their versatility across dayparts, the high quality of their ingredients and packaging, and their extended, seven-day refrigerated shelf life.
Meanwhile, Tyson Foodservice’s Hillshire Farm® brand offers solutions for pizza toppings, including its All Natural* Fully Cooked Pork Chorizo Crumbles (also a 2022 FABI Award recipient), perfect for store-made breakfast pizzas.
For more hot, handheld options, consider Tyson Foodservice’s iconic Jimmy Dean® breakfast sausage brand, which includes products such as its Jimmy Dean® Heat ‘n Serve Fully Cooked Breakfast Sausage. On a biscuit, roll, English muffin or croissant, it provides the core of a satisfying handheld breakfast sandwich.
Retailers can also offer customers the great taste of Jimmy Dean® sausage in bite-sized form with Jimmy Dean® Sausage Tots. These items can be heated in microwave, convection or conventional ovens to provide a high-protein, grab-and-go solution for breakfast or an anytime snack.
Visit Tyson Foodservice to learn how these products and others can help build a breakfast offering that meets the demands of today’s consumers.
*Minimally processed, no artificial ingredients
This post is sponsored by Tyson Convenience