A Circle K store in Colorado Springs, USA | Photo credit: CC BY-SA 4.0 

US convenience store chain Circle K has launched a nationwide marketing campaign in the US to ‘bust perceptions on convenience store coffee’.  
 

According to Circle K, 76% of US consumers do not buy coffee from a convenience store, with 55% assuming the quality and taste is inferior to beverages served in coffee shops. 

The Alimentation Couche-Tard-owned company cited a recent blind tasting of the brand’s in-store coffee and successful coffee truck trial as suggesting consumer perceptions are negatively influenced by its convenience store label. 

As part of the marketing campaign Circle K launched a generic branded ‘Kafe’ coffee truck – often associated with artisan, barista-style coffee vendors – to serve its coffee to US consumers, who it said gave a ‘resounding vote of confidence’ in its products.  

Circle K is also offering free coffee across its US stores on 25 January 2023 to ‘convert convenience store coffee skeptics to Circle K coffee believers’. 

The company, which serves more than 120 million cups of coffee across the US each year, has recently installed new bean-to-cup self-serve coffee machines across its 7,000+ stores in the country. 

“At Circle K we’re really proud of the coffee we offer our customers and believe it stacks up against the world’s best cups of coffee. So proud, in fact, that we’re giving it away for free for everyone to give it a try. We imagine after trying our coffee, you will love it as much as we do,” said David Hall, Vice President of Global Food Service, Circle K. 

Quebec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard operates approximately 9,000 Circle K stores across the US and Canada.  

The multi-national convenience store operator has a presence in over 20 international markets, including large footprints in Mexico, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Indonesia, Ireland, Vietnam and Egypt.