Food-to-go in UK convenience – the Co-op take on impact and opportunity

Co-op's recently published State of the Mission report highlights the relative importance of different missions across its food retail business. Here we share some of our key takeaways from a broader convenience and food-to-go perspective.

1.        Coop has identified 17 distinct shopper missions from its analysis of 1.57bn customer baskets

It then splits these into seven higher level missions: top up, food-to-go, meal occasions, treat, newsagent, entertaining and gifting.  Top up missions are – both in volume and value - the most important, but food-to-go is its number 2 core mission, with 190m baskets and an average transaction value of just over £5.

2.        Food-to-go is perhaps less skewed to lunchtime purchases than you might imagine

 

The category definition does include snacks, breakfast items and drinks, but still perhaps slightly surprising that only 28% of purchases come between 12 and 3pm. 15% of purchases are before 9am, with a further 20% between 9am and 12. But perhaps the key lesson, wherever you are in your food-to-go journey, is to remember that the early bird catches a bigger worm. In other words, get your day's offer out early to capture more sales.

3.        Food-to-go has a weekday skew

 

From Monday to Friday food-to-go is included in just over 25% of daily baskets, peaking on Thursday, but for Saturday and Sunday the equivalent figure is c. 20%. This shows that, for most stores, food-to-go can’t just be a weekday phenomenon. While you might not want the same volume or range breadth at the weekend, there are still many missions to be catered for here. But understanding that the footfall might have a different shape to it, both in terms of needs and timing, will be an important success driver.

4.        Among under 25s, food-to-go is the single most significant mission for Co-op shoppers

There’s a continuing and consistent decline as Co-op shoppers age, with food-to-go only accounting for 6.3% of missions among those over 66. While this age group might not be the key target, there’s also significant under representation among other more mature age groups – 20.4% among 36-50 and 13.6% among 51-65s. Co-op is clearly doing well in targeting younger shoppers, but there could be an opportunity in developing propositions to retain more these food-to-go shoppers as they age.

5.        Members spend significantly more on food-to-go than non-members

The average member food-to-go spend per visit is £6.68 – this compares with £4.49 for non-members. Among members, average frequency of food-to-go missions is 1.2 missions per week – not a bad return but one with potential to drive upwards.

To take a look at the full report from the Co-op, click here.

To find out more about how we can help you upgrade your food-to-go proposition, whether through our insight safaris, workshops, best practice presentations or consultancy services, get in touch.