This article is brought to you by Krispy Krunchy Chicken.

Convenience stores are one of the fastest-growing foodservice channels, with foodservice accounting for 27.7% of in-store sales and 38.6% of in-store gross margin, according to the NACS State of the Industry Report® of 2024 Data.

“Foodservice is becoming more and more relevant for c-store operators. We’ve seen increasing competition between QSRs and c-stores for customers—in fact, a recent study found that an estimated 50% of QSR customers now have convenience stores in their consideration set for hot prepared foods,” said Alice Crowder, chief marketing officer at Krispy Krunchy Chicken, citing the Intouch Insights Convenience Store Trends Report for 2024. “That’s a huge leap from even a few years ago, and it’s directly attributable to convenience stores really upping their game and resetting expectations of what their customers can get.”

Offering foodservice is a great way for convenience retailers to increase sales. Additionally, partnering with third-party foodservice providers can help retailers widen that net and attract more consumers through brand recognition, on-demand products that respond to their preferences and online ordering—all in a way that can be less resource-intensive for the operator.

“Today’s customers expect c-stores to have high-quality freshly made foods, but creating a foodservice program isn’t just a lever to pull and say, ‘We’re adding food now.’ Retailers need to have a menu they can execute, and price and merchandise appropriately,” said Crowder, adding, “That’s where a turnkey program like Krispy Krunchy Chicken can help. We’ve figured out all of those things for retailers.”

The foodservice provider that convenience retailers choose to partner with can help increase their relevancy with customers.

“Based on our research, customers who choose Krispy Krunchy do so for three reasons: high quality, strong value and overall craveability,” said Crowder. “In other words, customers are going out of their way to purchase food at stores that offer Krispy Krunchy. They’ll drive past other locations for this chicken.”

Continue reading “Because You Deserve Better From a Foodservice Solution” in the October 2025 issue of NACS Magazine.