Technology turns great ideas into great execution, Mendy Meriwether, principal and vice president of foodservice at NexChapter, said.
Meriwether spoke at CSP’s C-StoreTEC forum alongside Richard Guidry, owner and president of Chefs-Marketers-Operators (CMO) Consulting, and Matthew Stephenson, vice president of people and culture at NexChapter. The event took place Monday through Wednesday in Plano, Texas.
When it comes to foodservice in convenience stores, technology can help ensure food programs are executed well, even if the employee is new.
“Most retailers have a super high turnover at store level, or they have call outs. And so, when you have SOPs [standard operating procedures] of how to make a quesadilla or a pizza or a panini, per say, you need really some smart technology for that associate or team member that really doesn’t know how to make it,” Meriwether said.
This can turn a c-stores execution into excellence, and at the store level, employees recognize it as an aid to assist.
“I think the rub, internally, is you’re constantly trying to figure out or prove the ROI [return on investment],” she said.
Guidry shared the three pieces of foodservice technology he’d focus on to help with employee turnover, assuming the c-store already has the right product, training and people in place.
- Production planning and forecasting: This involves making sure that a team member knows what to put out when or how much to prepare. If a c-store is recruiting from a QSR, this is what they’ll be used to, Guidry said.
- Task management technology and software: This is to guide employees on what to do and when to do it.
- Food safety technology: This could include sensors for temperature monitoring.
Meriwether added a bonus: “Smart ovens are key,” she said, giving the example of ovens that allow a c-store to make over programming changes at one location and then have that automatically update the ovens at all of the stores in a chain.
Meriwether started with NexChapter in early October. The Des Moines, Iowa-based consulting firm helps retailers with loyalty, retail media and digital commerce strategy. Meriwether, who brings years of operator experience and food and beverage leadership to the position, previously led foodservice strategy and execution at Wawa, Pennsylvania-based Wawa and Westborough, Massachusetts-based EG America, designing menu systems, optimizing supply chains and driving unit-level profitability.
Guidry most recently worked as the senior vice president of foodservice at GPM Investments LLC, a subsidiary of Richmond, Virginia-based Arko. He also worked at Ankeny, Iowa-based Casey’s and Atlanta-based RaceTrac. He’s now running CMO Consulting, which helps companies grow and optimize their foodservice business through streamlining and thoughtful innovation.
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