Revitalizing the Slurpee Brand by 7-Eleven Australia: Sales Patterns and Consumer Behavior
Revitalising
the Slurpee brand
Using this information 7-Eleven Australia built a clear picture of current sales patterns and consumer behaviour. • Overall Slurpee sales were steady, they were not increasing • Each store sold an average of 60 units a day but with little annual growth • Sales of Slurpee grew from Wednesday, peaked on Friday and remained high into the weekend • The majority of Slurpee customers tended to arrive after school hours, with most sales occurring between 3 and 6pm • Consumers preferred to buy larger serves and these were more likely to be bought during the peak time of 4 and 6pm. Other quantitative research reinforced that Slurpee acted as a destination driver. Fifty percent of all 7-Eleven customers reported Slurpee as, “one of the main reasons why they visited 7-Eleven.” In particular 72 percent of those aged 15 to 24 years old reported that the Slurpee was the reason that they visited a 7-Eleven! Focus groups are an extremely important part of qualitative market research. 7-Eleven used extensive focus group sessions involving those key consumers who were in target segments that purchased the Slurpee. 7-Eleven classifies these segments as the ‘Junior Junk Junkies’, males and females aged between 16 - 21, and the ‘Fast Fixers’, males and females aged between 18 to 35. The participants were asked a series of questions about 7-Eleven’s Slurpee and other product ranges as well as more general lifestyle information, e.g. what they did in their spare time, their employment, the sorts of food they ate, the music they liked as well as other brands they would use. Focus group interviews help retailers construct a profile of their target demographic and also to gain direct feedback about their customers’ product and purchase experiences.
1 Introduction
7-Eleven is the world’s largest operator of convenience stores with more than 35,000 franchised and licensed stores in 17 countries generating annual sales exceeding $36 billion. 7-Eleven
the Slurpee brand
Using this information 7-Eleven Australia built a clear picture of current sales patterns and consumer behaviour. • Overall Slurpee sales were steady, they were not increasing • Each store sold an average of 60 units a day but with little annual growth • Sales of Slurpee grew from Wednesday, peaked on Friday and remained high into the weekend • The majority of Slurpee customers tended to arrive after school hours, with most sales occurring between 3 and 6pm • Consumers preferred to buy larger serves and these were more likely to be bought during the peak time of 4 and 6pm. Other quantitative research reinforced that Slurpee acted as a destination driver. Fifty percent of all 7-Eleven customers reported Slurpee as, “one of the main reasons why they visited 7-Eleven.” In particular 72 percent of those aged 15 to 24 years old reported that the Slurpee was the reason that they visited a 7-Eleven! Focus groups are an extremely important part of qualitative market research. 7-Eleven used extensive focus group sessions involving those key consumers who were in target segments that purchased the Slurpee. 7-Eleven classifies these segments as the ‘Junior Junk Junkies’, males and females aged between 16 - 21, and the ‘Fast Fixers’, males and females aged between 18 to 35. The participants were asked a series of questions about 7-Eleven’s Slurpee and other product ranges as well as more general lifestyle information, e.g. what they did in their spare time, their employment, the sorts of food they ate, the music they liked as well as other brands they would use. Focus group interviews help retailers construct a profile of their target demographic and also to gain direct feedback about their customers’ product and purchase experiences.
1 Introduction
7-Eleven is the world’s largest operator of convenience stores with more than 35,000 franchised and licensed stores in 17 countries generating annual sales exceeding $36 billion. 7-Eleven