The convenience store industry is changing along with its customers. And their choices. For quite some time now, the leading c-store chains keep building bigger stores where they sell more hot food. Because, people like to eat.

Not that eating is a new phenomenon previously unnoticed in human culture. But what drives this shift to more food than ever, is a shift from the traditionally understood c-store model, with cold drinks and dry snacks, plus coffee and cigarettes, to the new model that directly competes with the QSR industry.

What are the popular food offerings in fast-food restaurants? Burgers, fried chicken, hot dogs and pizza. What are the popular food offerings in the refreshed and updated convenience stores? See above.

Add to it the aggressive pricing that often undercuts the QSRs, and we have a serious contender for the title of America’s stomach pleaser.

As the competition fires up, the issues of optimal site selection and locally appropriate menu become ever more important. In this fired-up environment, the three-letter abbreviation, KYC, stands front and center.

KYC. Know your Customer. If you know who they are, you can figure out what they want, and give it to them. Because if you don’t or you think you do, but you don’t – you are bound to make very costly mistakes.

It sounds easy on paper, but in real life, retail demographic analysis and location analysis in general requires quite a lot of work, involving thorough analysis of traffic patterns, travel times, points of origin, and a myriad of demographic parameters…

It takes a fully staffed analytics department to deal with data of this complexity.

It costs a lot.

Or so it was, until Ticon came up with an easy, affordable solution to this important but challenging task. Ticon’s site analysis for retail site selection can be ordered online in a matter of minutes, and received in a matter of days. No need to enter into lengthy agreements or pay hefty user fees. You only pay for what you need, when you need it.