How good were foodservice sales in c-stores in 2020? About as bad as foodservice sales were in 2020. More than 25% of retailers said sales were up significantly compared with 2019, while another 26% said sales were down significantly. The tiebreaker was decided in the “up slightly” or “down slightly” categories, where nearly 16% said up but 23% said down.

But after a year like no other, it’s easy to look ahead for relief, and retailers are looking hopeful in 2021. Nearly 39% said they expect foodservice sales to greatly increase compared with 2020, and only 2% expect any decrease at all. These percentages are about as hopeful as they were in last year’s survey, conducted just before the pandemic was declared.