Advanced online ordering and in-store pickup technology that’s been proven in the restaurant industry is moving deeper into the convenience store realm as Swipeby begins deploying its technology in the C-store industry.
First deployed through a partnership with Quality Marts in the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, metro area, the technology is also rolling out to other convenience chains in New England and the West Coast over the coming months.
This is the first time this type of retail technology has been deployed with larger convenience store chains as Swipeby sees opportunities in more retail sectors as demand grows for easier online ordering and pickup for consumers.
“It is pretty clear that the trend toward greater demand for ordering-to-curbside pickup due to societal and convenience issues is pushing us to think broader and more outside the box in terms of our type of retail technology,” said Carl Turner, Swipeby’s CEO and founder. “There are so many applications for it and we feel these pilots with large convenience store chains will say a lot to the market. We are excited about starting the Quality Mart pilot and creating an innovative solution for other C-stores.”
According to Turner, Swipeby has been developing its platform to work in the C-store environment where “convenience” is a key attribute. The company’s platform helps these small-to-medium-sized businesses compete with food-oriented drive-thrus by providing a geofenced virtual drive-thru solution that will allow convenience stores to acquire customer delivery data to drive marketing efforts with existing and potential customers.
The company added that it will also allow convenience stores like Quality Mart to open new revenue streams as society becomes more reliant on ordering online and using curbside pickup.
“We have always believed in providing our customers with the best possible products and the highest level of service each and every time,” said Sam Metzler, a senior vice president with Quality Oil Company, the parent company of Quality Mart convenience store. “That’s why we jumped at this opportunity with Swipeby not only to extend that philosophy, but to think of new ways to deliver on this promise.”
Quality Mart will pilot the Swipeby platform at five stores.
According to Convenience Store Products’ 2020 Foodservice Handbook based on research from Technomic, more than half (53 percent) of C-store operators said they think delivery, mobile ordering, curbside pickup, and other technologies will become more common than in-store foodservice purchasing down the line. But less than 15 percent have actually implemented these services into their foodservice programs.
“It is very clear the opportunity for our technology platform in the convenience store sector is very real,” Turner added. “These pilots represent the beginning for us, convenience stores and their patrons in the region and across the nation.”
