Insight Flash: CE data shows that while both retailers saw increased new and repeat fuel customers, gains were short-lived.

Recently, two major players in the convenience/gas industry, Sheetz and Circle K, held one-day holiday promos that included discounts on the price of gas. While both retailers saw a sharp increase in the number of new and repeat fuel customers on the day of the promo, those gains were short-lived as customer growth and transaction share returned to more normalized levels as seen before the promotion. Additionally, neither brand saw an increase in the number of shoppers who made non-fuel (convenience store) purchases on the day of their respective promotions.

Sheetz recently held a Fourth of July promo where customers could purchase gas at any of their locations for $1.776/gallon. CE Transaction data reveals that Sheetz saw a dramatic increase in the number of both new and repeat fuel customers on the day of its promo (7/4/2023) before quickly returning to more normalized levels. While Sheetz saw an increase in the number of shoppers who purchased gas during the promo, the same can’t be said for non-fuel (convenience store) purchases.

Sheetz competitor Circle K held a promo on the Friday before Labor Day (5/25/2023), where customers could receive a $0.40 discount on each gallon of gas purchased. This less flashy discount was not as successful at drawing in new customers, but Circle K did see an increase in New and Repeat shoppers on the day before settling back down. Similar to Sheetz, Circle K also did not see a significant increase in the number of New or Repeat shoppers who made a non-fuel purchase on the day of their promo.

Consumer Edge is the leading provider of alternative data for consumer spending behavior, and the only provider of global revenue signals. If you’d like to benefit from using Transact US or other products for gas station and convenience stores, retail, and other industry data year-round to track trends and dynamics like these, reach out to insights@staging.consumer-edge.com.

Michael Gunther is the VP Head of Insights for the CEIC. Explore more of his insights here and follow him on LinkedIn.