Commentary

Let’s reimagine convenience where we live, work, learn and play

Consumer adoption of new technology is being put to the test with this season's pent-up demand for travel and hospitality combined with the return to work and campuses.

Image provided by iStock.

April 18, 2022 by Alex McCandless — SVP, Marketing, Worldnet Payments

A loud, "We're back!" could be felt amongst the vending, micro market, coffee and pantry service leaders who are reimagining convenience where we live, work, learn and play. Chicago's McCormick Place was home to this year's National Automatic Merchandising Association show which allowed us to fully step into the world of self-service and autonomous retail.

It's one thing to see pictures or videos of the products and solutions this industry is building, but it's completely different when you get to touch, feel, sip, and munch as part of the experience.

On display were the results of changing consumer behaviors, the technology that's enabling transformation, and the folks who make it a reality. Let me share the bits that really stood out because we're in the midst of the ultimate come-back story.

At times you feel like you've heard it before, but numbers always give things more context. Consumer adoption of new technology is being put to the test with this season's pent-up demand for travel and hospitality combined with the return to work and campuses.

Travel is back, which has major implications for convenience services:

Travel and tourism in the U.S. will reach pre-pandemic levels in 2022, contributing nearly $2 trillion to the U.S. economy, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council.
Gen-Z leads the comeback of travel planning and spending in 2022, according to Avail's "The State of Travel in 2022."
Atlanta is once again the busiest airport in the world with 75 million passengers in 2021, according to Airports Council International.

Travel destinations will be major jumping off points for micro markets and "smart stores," which according to one NAMA panel represent the next evolution in convenience services.

Consumers want it now!

Meanwhile, how consumers buy and shop has changed since the pandemic. Adoption of contactless, mobile, in-app, walk-in-walk-out, buy-online-pick-up-in-store, QR codes and self-checkout options have added even more convenience to the mix.

Michael Coffey, chief strategy and innovation officer at Canteen Vending Services Inc., shared in one session that the pandemic has changed the way we snack. Consumers went from 2.5 snacks per day to six because people needed to reward themselves for surviving yet another Zoom call.

To accommodate for this change in snacking behavior, companies like Canteen are diving deeper into the data to ensure they're ready to accommodate how this new behavior will play out in a hybrid office environment when the masses return to their desks.

According to PepsiCo Inc., 68.4% of consumers would purchase more if unattended was offered in more channels.

Micro markets and beyond!

So what are the solutions and technologies that are ready to help deliver experiences designed for this new change in consumer behavior?

Micro markets have been the fastest growing convenience service because they've transformed the traditional office space with versatile high-end food and beverage options and a perfect blend of technology for ease and functionality.

Micro markets are typically found at locations with a medium to large active customer base with a high-product diversity. But what's next? Parlevel's Alan Munson spoke to a standing-room-only session to discuss what comes after micro markets.

PicoMarkets bring self-service innovation to smaller locations. Organizations like 365 Retail make micro market technology available to organizations that don't have sufficient people — or space — to warrant a fully-fledged micro market. Their PicoCooler is a perfect example of a modern convenience services experience that's finding its niche.

In addition, "smart stores" offer a combination of locked intelligent coolers (like the PicoCooler) with pantries, shelves and IoT technology that only opens with payment. These work well with existing vending infrastructure and give folks the product diversity of a micro market.

Coffee won't wait!

Attendees explore the Robo Cafe from KioSoft at Imagination Way.

The coffee service sector remains the slowest convenience services sector to recover from the pandemic, but recover it will, as America runs on coffee. The trade show demonstrated that technology continues to bring more convenient ways to serve the best possible quality coffee.

Case in point was KioSoft's Robo Cafe Kiosk which makes your coffee with the utmost precision and speed. Customers can seamlessly order ahead via a mobile app or an easy-to-use touchscreen interface. The best part of the whole experience (besides the coffee) is that you get to witness the entire process in real-time which is a new type of "robotic" latte art.

Of course, technology has elevated the industry, but the people who make it a reality are part of the leapfrogging that's transforming the customer experience. There were thousands of industry players walking the hall and enthusiastic about the products, solutions and convenient experiences we're playing an active role in building.

It's no surprise that the global vending market is expected to reach $56.96 billion by 2025 according to Grand View Research, nearly 20% higher than 2019 with pantry service and micro markets expected to lead the way.

Photo: Networld Media Group.

About Alex McCandless

Sabina Osorio is the Marketing Director at Worldnet Payments, an integrated payments gateway that specializes in self-service. She's a marketing leader with 10+ years of experience in content marketing, branding, and events.

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