Searching for missing link in convenience shopping
A mobile app that can track store inventory is a must to make it happen, Circle K says
Dubai: A mobile app has its uses even for a convenience store operator. The regional franchise of Circle K wants the app that would instantly provide future online shoppers a complete inventory of stocks at each of its local stores in real-time.
“There’s no point in having our own ecommerce offering if shoppers cannot get a confirmation that what they are looking for is actually there to buy at our outlets,” said Fahmi Al Shawa, Managing Director of Circle K. “A mobile app can provide that dynamic real-time inventory and can get updated constantly. That would be vital for us to be ready in selling online. Until the time we can be guaranteed a flawless tech-enabled platform, we will not go online.”
Circle K has put out contracts to develop the app. Al Shawa said an early version was tested, but which did not meet with expectations. (Earlier, the retailer had tried selling through its portal, but later discontinued it.)
According to Al Shawa, the UAE and other Gulf markets have reached a point where convenience stores can coexist with hypermarkets and supermarkets. “In the West, consumer habits have them visit hypermarkets once or twice a month, supermarkets once or twice a fortnight, while convenience outlets pull in a shopper three or four times a week,” he added. “Similar patterns are starting to form in the Gulf territories too. But being in the right high-traffic location is a must for a convenience store to be viable.”
The Circle K network has grown to 40 outlets in the region since the introduction in 2011-11 and the plans are to top 100 in another two years or so. Sub-franchising is something that it would look at some point, with a likely tag of $250,000-$500,000 (Dh1.83 million) for the rights. Existing Circle K locations can range between 9 square metres to 270 square metres.
