Tomorrow’s world in store today
Winner: Premier RaceTrack Pitstop Bearsden
The Innovation Award – supported by IQOS by Philip Morris
Interview with retail manager Guna Sud and store manager Leigh McCarter
ENSURING a convenience store remains at the forefront of the category takes plenty of forward thinking and constant vigilance about all the goings on in the sector.
From the products found on shelves to the technical improvements you can bring in to the store, a retailer’s job is seemingly never-ending when it comes to meeting the high expectations that consumers now seem to have.
In such circumstances, though, there is no clearer example of forward-thinking retail than in the Premier RaceTrack Pitstop chain of stores across Scotland’s central belt and the firm’s Bearsden forecourt is entirely emblematic of the hard work the team puts in to ensure consumers have access to the very latest improvements the sector has to offer.
With cutting-edge technology to help train staff and clamp down on crime, as well as products on shelf to match the latest consumer craze on TikTok, Premier RaceTrack Pitstop Bearsden offers local consumers something trendy and new with every visit to the store.
And that’s just the approach that retail manager Guna Sud has towards the entire RaceTrack Pitstop estate, to help offer the very latest and the very best that the convenience channel has for both customer satisfaction and staff protection.
Guna said: “We have been really pushing the back-of-house technology over the last 12 months in particular – our training is all done automated through our own portal now.
“And we’ve been doing a big push for facial recognition technology across our cameras. We started this about two years ago and have been building it up since.
“It has been really helpful to clamp down on crime across all our stores and we’ve noticed that it’s the same offenders that will come into one of our stores to steal and will go on to do it at another RaceTrack site.
“So now, if one of these thieves come into any of our stores, their face pings on our security system to let us know if they were caught stealing in another site like Strathclyde or Sauchiehall.”
On top of this, the Bearsden store includes a licence plate recognition system that identifies drivers who have left the pumps without paying in the past, something which has allowed staff members to get the money owed from drivers even 12 months after the theft.
The technological advancements across this store and the savvy approach to consumers certainly impressed Scottish Grocer judges enough to see fit to award RaceTrack Pitstop Bearsden The Innovation Award at the Scottish Grocer Awards 2023.
While the focus on the back of the house has been the driving force behind the Bearsden store’s achievements, Guna has plans to bring a more technical approach to customers when it comes to the food-to-go (FTG) offer in store.
The retail manager is set to introduce standing touchscreens that will allow consumers to order more FTG options from RaceTrack’s Hoagies and Tubbees brands. This tech is set to be tested in the Wishaw store before rolling out across the entire retail estate if it proves to be successful for the business.
Guna said: “We’re planning to make more room at the counter for this by moving more of our spirits to the beer cave area in store, so that we can make some other options for consumers behind the counter with FTG.
“It’s an extra level of convenience for our shoppers, especially if they’re in a rush and don’t have the time to be waiting in queues so we do think this is the next step to be taking.”
Ever ambitious to stay on top of the latest news in convenience as well, plans are already in motion at RaceTrack Bearsden to ensure the team is ready for the incoming disposable vape ban.
The store has already set up its vaping space to separate refillable vape options from disposables, with the staff taking the time to talk with and encourage members of the public to make the swap to refillable options now, offering a better-for-value option in the shop.
Further to this, the team has been working to introduce more heat-not-burn products in the store by taking the time to introduce Phillip Morris’ IQOS Iluma device to more customers.
Guna said: “We recently brought in IQOS to the store and were initially a bit wary about introducing a new product here that most people aren’t aware of. But now we’re fully on board with it.
“We’re seeing how good a device it is for customers in particular and even members of my staff that do smoke or vape have made the switch to the device, which really helps in talking to customers about it since they know IQOS so well now.
“And it is all about that education to get that up-sell. It takes time to talk to customers about it but I know our manager, Leigh McCarter, has managed to bring some shoppers round to this.”
Leigh added: “We managed to sell all the devices that we brought into the store within the first week, so this was about eight customers making the switch to IQOS.
“We’ve still got a lot of interest here, as well. We try talking to customers when they come in for cigarettes or vapes to tell them a bit about IQOS.”
Although it’s not just across nicotine that consumers seem to be broadening their horizons in the Bearsden store, as Guna talked about how he has managed to make the most out of the rising demand for more world beer options from the off-trade section.
He said: “We brought in 15 SKUs of imported German beers into one of our stores as a trial. It worked really well there, so we’ve now made sure every one of our sites has a selection for shoppers.
“We were a bit surprised by how well they did, as well, as they are quite pricey for customers because they have to be imported.
“We weren’t sure if they were ever going to sell but we saw one shopper come in to buy six all in the one go, so the demand is clearly there for something a bit different.”
And going forward for the RaceTrack Pitstop brand, Guna remains committed to staying on top of the latest and very best that convenience has to ensure his stores remain ahead of the game.
Guna said: “It’s important to see the trends coming through – for products or for tech. We keep on top of things like TikTok trends since its such a strong and important way to find out what consumers are looking for.
“So we make sure we’ve got them in store, we’ll look at the top 10 or 20 trending products and make sure we have them all in for consumers.”
