Costcutter Brockley, situated in High St in UK, owner  Peter Patel honored with Independent Bakery Retailer Award in the Asian Trader Awards 2019.

Peter Patel says about the single most profitable innovation he have made to his store over the past 12 months. “Introducing a dedicated chiller for vegan products has meant we’ve been able to significantly increase the range and reap the rewards, with weekly sales now at £2,000”.

He describes about his best strategy for increasing footfall in his store.

“Really getting under the skin of what existing shoppers want and crucially who else could be shopping with us. Once we have that, finding a point of difference and answering their needs”.

He also describes two key challenges facing convenience and explain your plans for taking advantage.

“1. Point of difference With two Sainsbury’s, a Co-op and independently owned convenience stores all within walking distance, we have had to work hard to create a point of difference. Using our shopper insights we have created an offering that is tailored to meet our shoppers’ needs, including the most comprehensive BWS and vegan offerings in the area. Not only do our sales prove that we’ve created a point of difference, but the fact that our nearest competitor, Sainsbury’s, is now directing customers to our vegan range, is the icing on the cake. 2. Shopping environment All the research showed that our local shoppers wanted smaller batched produced products, whether that was BWS or vegan products. They’re also keen to top-up shop regularly and want healthy, easy dinners with fresh ingredients and that’s exactly what we’ve delivered. We’ve also tried to look after our younger visitors and have introduced small shopping trolleys for children, which have been a big hit. The results speak for themselves. Basket spend has grown from £5.30 to £6.66 and sales have grown from £26,000 to £35,000”

He lists three ways in which he have responded and retained footfall after a new discounter/supermarket opened in his catchment area.

“1. Point of difference to create distinction. We’ve created a real point of difference with our vegan offering. Our competitors have now reduced their vegan range as they simply couldn’t compete with the depth and breadth of our offering. We have also introduced a specialist range of grocery items to fulfil demand from customers seeking a premium range of goods. 2. The extension of our BWS offering means that we now have one of the most comprehensive ranges in the area, ensuring we always have a great range of possibilities to pair with our ‘meal for tonight’ options. 3. In a direct response to customer feedback and to reduce environmental impact, we have introduced loose fruit and vegetables, so shoppers can buy the exact quantity they need”