KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Foodservice is a key area in Pilot Flying J’s $1 billion three-year New Horizons initiative “to create an outstanding experience for our guest,” CEO Shameek Konar said in a recent online project announcement.
While initiative enhancements include an array of items such as interior and exterior improvements to make stores more welcoming, “by far, we’re most excited about the expansion of our food,” said Allison Cornish, vice president of store modernization, who is leading New Horizons. “More variety, more Pilot signature fresh deli items, pizza, homestyle meals, grab-and-go foods, coffee to more locations.”
Pilot currently has proprietary food available in about 300 stores, but during New Horizons, “that will expand to as many locations as possible,” she said.
Pilot plans on offering breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack options. Later this year it will roll out new food offerings including freshly prepared foods, such as cut fruits, and premium beverages.
- Pilot Co. is No. 12 on CSP’s 2022 Top 40 Update to the 2021 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count. Watch for the full 2022 Top 202 ranking in the June issue of CSP magazine and in CSP Daily News.
Expanded food and beverage offerings, both retail and premium, include:
- Freshly prepared pizza and homestyle meals.
- Easy grab-and-go options and fresh salads and fruit.
- Bean-to-cup Pilot Coffee.
- All-natural cold brew and artisan juices.
- More top snack and drink brands.
“We recently released our Honey Maple Chicken Waffle and hot tenders, and coming soon is the Bigger Better Burger,” Cornish added. “We’ll have chicken pesto pizza in the spring, more soups, chicken tortilla and beef stew, and we’re testing new made-to-order concepts with regionally diverse ethnic cuisine options.”
Customers will be able to enjoy these new food offerings in expanded seating and dining areas improved with fresh paint and new flooring and equipment.
Plans also include adding energy-efficient lighting for well-lit parking lots, improving the fueling experience and updating branding and store features. Pilot also will enhance showers and restrooms.
“When you’re on the road, you stop at a Pilot, we want to earn your turn,” CEO Shameek Konar said. “When you come back, we want you to stop at a Pilot again. Our goal is to create an outstanding experience for our guests.”
Knoxville, Tenn.-based Pilot Flying J will overhaul 400 to 500 of its travel centers across its network of more than 670 during New Horizons. This investment into the customer and team member experience comes after Pilot surveyed thousands of customers and team members, asking what they value, challenges they face and what they like. The answers informed “what to do with the billion dollars, where to do it, and when to do it,” Konar said.
Cornish provided stats from the survey, including:
- 60% of professional drivers rate food offerings as top reason for choosing a travel center.
- More than 50% of professional drivers mention the ability to get in and out quickly as key factor in travel center selection.
- Nearly 90% of auto drivers choose a travel center based on its convenience, safety, cleanliness and product availability.
- 85% of auto guests use Pilot’s restrooms when they stop at its stores, and they rank cleanliness as the most important factor.
In the area of technology, Pilot is installing new retail and fueling technology to increase efficiency and allow team members to spend more time serving customers, Cornish said, and improving break rooms and work spaces. “We’re adding new equipment in the back office and kitchen to make team members’ jobs easier,” she said.
Pilot also plans to bolster self-checkout to get customers back on the road faster while maintaining team member support to ensure personal service. “We now have 70 locations with self-checkout,” said Mike Rodgers, chief strategy and information officer. “After Horizons is complete, most stores will have self-checkout.”