New National Survey Shows Consumers Seek High-Quality Food and Beverages as Part of Fueling Experience

Americans are increasingly selecting fueling locations based on the quality of the food associated with the gas station, according to national survey results released earlier this year by NACS. The association represents the convenience store industry, which sells 80 percent of the fuel purchased in the United States.

While survey results show that gas price is still the primary determinant in selecting a station, an increasing  percentage of consumers say that the quality of items inside the store dictates where they buy fuel.  In fact, one in seven drivers (16 percent) say that the in-store offer is driving their fueling decision, a 5-point increase since 2015.

A majority (51 percent) of American drivers still say that the gas price is the reason that they prefer a specific store or chain, but that is a 6-point drop over the past two years.

Because of the expanded food and beverage offers at stores, fueling customers also are going inside the store more: 42 percent of those fueling up also went inside the store, a 7-point jump from two years ago. For those going inside, the most popular reasons were to pay for gas at the register (50 percent), buy a beverage (45 percent) or buy a snack (36 percent). More than one in five (22 percent) say they used the rest room. Overall, 8 percent say they bought a sandwich or meal, and that  percentage jumps to 13 percent for younger consumers ages 18 to 34.

“The numbers clearly show the growing trend of consumers seeking out food and beverages as part of their fueling experience. While retailers know they need to aggressively compete on gas prices — 67 percent of Americans say they will drive 5 minutes out of their way to save 5 cents per gallon — it also shows that there are other ways to compete for customers with a quality in-store offer,” said NACS Vice President of Strategic Industry Initiatives Jeff Lenard.

Gasoline demand in 2016 reached a record 9.32 million barrels per day in 2016 but only 33 percent of American drivers report that they drove more in 2016. For those who say they drove more, 41 percent cited their job as the main reason, as opposed to only 8 percent who cited gas prices.

Others findings from the survey results include: 73 percent of fuel customers pay by debit (37 percent) or credit (36 percent) card. Debit cards are most popular with younger consumers ages 18-34 (45 percent); evening rush is the most popular time to purchase fuel (36 percent), significantly more than morning rush (22 percent).

Nearly half (46 percent) of consumers say they have gotten a discount for their fuel by using a loyalty card or app and 23 percent have gotten a discount for paying by cash.

More than half (56 percent) of those who bought a sandwich or meal say they eat in in their car, compared to 34 percent who eat their purchase at their destination and 10 percent who eat at tables in the store.

The survey results were released as part of the 2016 NACS Retail Fuels Report (www.nacsonline.com/gasprices). 

The survey was conducted online by Penn Schoen Berland; 1,114 U.S. adults who purchase fuel for a vehicle such as a car, truck or van at least once per month were surveyed in January,  2017.