3 Big Numbers is a weekly column that looks at a few key details from around the c-store industry.
If you want to know what makes a good or bad customer experience, the best way to find out is to — you guessed it — ask some customers.
Digital commerce company NCR Voyix did a blind survey of shoppers to learn a little more about what brings them into stores, how they spend their money and what changes they’d like to see. The company shared that information in its 2025 Commerce Experience Report, released earlier this month.
In today’s “3 Big Numbers,” we look at some of the results from that study and what the respondents suggest c-stores could focus on.
53%
The percent of c-store customers who say they’ve gone out of their way to visit their favorite gas station.
There’s no escaping the impact prices are having on consumers’ buying choices. But if you take that out of the equation, what prompts shoppers to choose one convenience store over another?
According to NCR’s study, it’s often the name over the door.
“Most consumers … have gone out of their way to visit a specific gas station because they favor their convenience store,” the report noted.
It sounds easy, but building brand loyalty is a multi-pronged process that includes making sure the store is clean, the staff are friendly, the experience is consistent and the unique value proposition is front and center, according to c-store design firm Paragon Solutions. Stores that have it have earned it.
59%
The percentage of people aged 30-44 who have eaten at convenience store food in the past six months.
The top seller across convenience store shoppers is, unsurprisingly, packaged snacks and beverages. However, NCR also found that 47% of those it surveyed had tried convenience store food sometime in the previous six months.
Older customers don’t love the idea of a gas station burger, with more than 70% of them saying they haven’t eaten a meal at a c-store in the past six months. But the younger the cohort, the more willing they are to try a meal or six at their local c-store.
Among the youngest group surveyed, those 18 to 29, around 42% said they’d eaten at a convenience store between one and five times in the previous six months, and another 16% said they averaged at least one such meal a month in that time frame. And among those ages 30 to 44, the number who tried gas station food at least once was slightly higher, at 43%.
Prepared food brought in an average of $51,500 per month per c-store in 2023, according to data from NACS. Fresh meals have gone from the purview of a select number of larger chains to something any retailer can add to their stores. And according to NCR, the customers are eating it up.
47%
The percent of c-store customers who want c-stores to add self-serve kiosks.
There’s no denying personalization is important to the customer experience, but NCR’s data shows that shoppers may have other technologies higher on their priority lists.
While 26% of those surveyed said they wanted personalized product recommendations, that trailed behind the ability to use digital payments (32%) and self checkouts (47%).
Major retailers like Walmart, Target and Dollar General have pulled back on their use of self checkout, citing concerns about the user experience and shrink. Convenience stores, on the other hand, have been slower to adopt the technology, though companies like Love’s, Circle K and Kwik Trip have embraced it. There’s apparently still more of an appetite for it in the industry.
