Amazon Go convenience stores slated for Chicago, San Francisco

Amazon confirmed last month that Amazon Go convenience stores are slated for Chicago and San Francisco, but no timetable was provided. The first Amazon Go, an 1,800 square foot store that carries mostly food and beverages along with some nonfood items like batteries and over-the-counter medicine, opened in Seattle in January.

Amazon Go stores feature checkout-free shopping made possible by the company's "Just Walk Out" technology. Overhead cameras and weight sensors detect merchandise that shoppers take from and return to shelves, and keep track of items selected in a virtual cart.

Shoppers use the Amazon Go mobile app to gain entry, and when they leave the store, their Amazon account is automatically charged for the items they took with them.

Kroger to sell its 784 convenience stores

Kroger announced last week that it reached an agreement to sell its convenience store business for $2.15 billion to EG Group, a petroleum and convenience store retailer based in Great Britain. The deal includes 784 stores across 18 states.

The EG Group plans to continue operating the stores under their current banners (Turkey Hill, Kwik Shop, Quick Stop, Tom Thumb and Loaf 'N Jug), and plans to establish its North American headquarters in Cincinnati, where Kroger is based.

Burt Flickinger III, managing director at Strategic Resource Group, doesn't support the sale.

"For Kroger to sell more than 700 convenience stores when they had the opportunity to get to 1,700 stores, it is really regrettable that the company succumbed to this activist pressure because the c-stores were performing so well across all banners."

Flickinger believes that Kroger will miss out on the opportunity to further grow the business by installing Amazon lockers in the c-stores, as Marathon Speedway currently does.

Survey says millennials shop for groceries differently than the rest of us

According to a recent survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers, 99 percent of adults in the U.S. buy some or all of their groceries in person. Those surveyed cited immediate access to products and the ability to select fresh meat, dairy and produce as the top reasons.

The survey also revealed that 93 percent of adults shop for groceries at discount department stores (Walmart, Target), and 92 percent shop at traditional supermarkets . Sixty-nine percent of the people surveyed said they shop at limited assortment food stores (Aldi, Trader Joe's) and warehouse clubs.

Millennials revealed different shopping behaviors from all others. Seventy-four percent of them buy groceries from convenience stores, 67 percent from Amazon or other online retailers, and 66 percent from high-end supermarkets. Even when buying online, 81% of millennials go to the store to pick up their groceries.

New prototype Wawa under development for Florida

Wawa CEO Howard Stoeckel said recently that the company's stores scheduled to open this year in Florida will resemble a restaurant that sells gas, rather than a convenience store, as we are accustomed to in Pennsylvania and Delaware. The new store prototype will be built around fast-casual food and convenience, and will feature an array of proprietary foods and a "barista-style" coffee department.

According to reports, the first Florida store will open in Orlando in July, and five more locations will follow in the Orlando market in the following months. Stores in Tampa are scheduled to open in early 2013. Overall, the company expects to operate about 100 stores in central Florida over the course of the next five years.

Wawa signs leases, plans to enter Florida market

According to the Orlando Business Journal, Wawa has signed "more than 10" leases in the Orlando, Florida market, and the retailer has indicated it will open as many as 100 stores in the state.

According to a Wawa regional real estate manager, site work on the first set of stores will begin in the next month or two, with openings taking place next summer.

Currently Wawa has 588 stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Fuel is offered at 298 of these locations (that's more than half for those keeping score).

I have previously written about Walmart's entry into the convenience store/gas arena and their roll-out of up to 350 stores per year, but I doubt the Greater Philadelphia area is high on their list because of Wawa's domination here. It'll be interesting to see, however, if the Big Ws battle it out in the Sunshine state!

Is Giant planning to compete with Wawa?

Giant Food Stores plans to open its second Giant To Go convenience store in the Lancaster area. The store will be 4,000 square feet and will have three main areas: Meals to Go, Groceries to Go, and Snacks to Go. According to Supermarket News, the store will offer rotisserie and fried chicken, a salad bar, submarine sandwiches (customizable via a toppings bar), coffee, espresso and cappuccino, as well as sushi, breakfast items and soup.

Since Giant sells gasoline at many supermarket locations, I wonder if that's the logical next step for Giant To Go locations.

Study: Third of Shoppers Shun C-Store Food

A "third of shoppers" haven't been to Wawa. I bet if this study was limited to the Philadelphia region, the results would be much different. Wawa isn't your average convenience store. How many times have you driven past a deli or supermarket to get a sandwich at Wawa? I do it all the time. As for their products, they produce their own milk (and have for over 100 years), the coffee is great (or so I'm told), and you can get fresh bread (even on Christmas Eve, as I once found out). And the touch screen ordering system is second to none.

Gottahava Wawa!

Study: Third of Shoppers Shun C-Store Food