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Customers to Roaring Fork Valley Co-op in Carbondale, Colorado, come to the store for tack, feed, fasteners and… Coffee and doughnuts.
Yes, coffee and doughnuts. One step in the business’ recent remodel included adding a small convenience store area, complete with booth seating, refrigerated displays of sandwiches and snacks and a soda machine for fountain drinks. This new area helps draw customers to the rest of the store and gives them a place to have a seat and enjoy breakfast or lunch when they come in to shop.
The coffee is nothing new—store manager Baldo Barragan says they’ve offered it for some time—and the remodel created an opportunity to expand on the idea.
“Along with free coffee, we sell fountain drinks, doughnuts and other snacks,” he says.
Convenience stores do this, so why not your store? Maybe you can’t add seating, but think about adding a small refrigerated display of breakfast or lunch sandwiches, especially for weekend warriors or contractors who grab meals on the go. Maybe they normally pick up a candy bar or bottle of water while they’re shopping—offer them the opportunity to have a sandwich instead.
