Making food-forward c-stores an irresistible destination
The convenience channel is always reinventing itself, and foodservice has emerged as a key category to drive traffic. Our industry’s main challenge is breaking down the stereotypes that have long kept consumers from viewing c-stores as credible and attractive food destinations.
The Canadian foodservice industry generates around $124 billion annually, and since the pandemic, it has evolved to favour the c-channel as an up-and-coming force. When convenience was deemed an essential service during the pandemic, the channel was tasked with helping keep food access open. Retailers with foodservice capabilities were positioned to capitalize as takeout and delivery service grew with changing customer behaviours. The pandemic forced regulators, vendor partners and customers to think beyond the traditional restaurant—as people’s homes became an extension of the dining experience.
The 2025 Foodservice Facts report, published by Restaurants Canada, reveals that 31% of orders at quick-service restaurants (QSRs) are for dine-in, while 45% are for takeout and delivery. The numbers point to a rebalancing in customer behaviour, where the restaurant experience is taking place outside the four walls of the sit-down restaurant. That change sends a clear signal: regulators need to expand the definition of a “restaurant,” and licensing frameworks must recognize food-primary operations inside convenience formats.
This post-pandemic tectonic shift is drawing convenience retailers and large grocers into direct competition with dine-in and QSR. The data backs this up. Lunch hour sales at QSR are rising due to return-to-office mandates and consumers are gravitating to value items. According to the 2025 Foodservice Facts report, younger Canadians, whose spending power continues to grow, placed higher importance on price, value and convenience compared with older Canadians. South of the border, convenience retailers are gaining share at breakfast as customers seek quality, fresh food and perceived value for dollars.
How the industry is adapting
Convenience retail is moving beyond legacy products to expanded food offerings that blur the line between restaurants and retail. At 7-Eleven Canada, we are building on our proprietary food reputation to show customers that their local c-store can also deliver trusted, satisfying fresh food options.
7-Eleven Canada offers fresh and prepared food for dine-in, takeout and delivery, operating under a food-primary model, with menu boards, kitchen equipment and health inspections equivalent to QSRs. Across our network of stores, customers can choose from more than 130 prepared food and beverage options, many of which are prepared and cooked in-store. We even have some stores in Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario that are licensed to sell alcohol alongside meals.
We dedicate a large portion of our marketing spend to showcase food offerings to potential customers. This perception of our channel as a trusted foodservice designation is improving, but it requires the whole channel to lean in and legitimize the growing foodservice category.
By owning prepared foods and dispensed beverages under our own proprietary banners and brands, we can better influence the customer experience. We control the recipes, the ingredients, the evolution of our offerings and get to select amazing vendor partners to work with. Proprietary programs allow us to move faster, tailor our menu to our customers’ tastes and build brand loyalty in ways that a third-party partnership simply cannot match.
Small, actionable steps
Where should independent convenience stores start if they don’t have the capital to build a kitchen on day one? Start with a right-sized offer, for example, high-quality pre-packaged sandwiches and heat-and-serve items, from a reputable supplier or convenience store commissary. The next step is to enable digital ordering and delivery, with packaging that preserves the food’s temperature and integrity.
Independent c-stores are nimble and can pivot quickly to create a foodservice offering tailored to their customer base. Once that’s established, and as demand grows, you can work on installing kitchen equipment, test new menu offerings, add a demarcated seating area or lean bar and scale to your store’s capacity.
Across all stages, risk management is non-negotiable; food safety, quality assurance and staff training must be embedded from the very start.
Research shows that consistency is what builds brand trust. Customers expect their go-to lunch item to taste the same regardless of location, be it Saskatoon, Sask. or Nanaimo, B.C. This requires standard foodservice operations and a menu you can execute the same way every time. It also means measuring your success against indicators such as product quality and repeat purchase.
Where we go from here
Food-forward convenience will continue to grow its share in key dayparts, like breakfast and lunch, and the broader ecosystem needs to keep up.
Ultimately, foodservice in convenience will be defined by the retailers that set clear standards, invest in capability, and maintain discipline on quality across channels. Retailers who execute consistently will capture more mealtimes and greater share of wallet.
Reach and efficiency give the convenience sector its strength, and fresh food is redefining its role in the industry. At 7-Eleven Canada, we are a food-first business, and this is the growth engine we will continue to scale.
