Dive Brief:
- Alimentation Couche-Tard recorded its fifth straight quarter of positive same-store merchandise sales growth in the U.S. during fiscal Q1 2027, according to the convenience retailer’s earnings report released Tuesday.
- Circle K’s parent company saw U.S. same-store merchandise revenues grow by 1.7% during the quarter and 1.6% across the company’s global network, according to the report. Growth was driven by continued momentum in food, energy drinks and other nicotine products.
- The gains build on a strong fiscal 2026, when Couche-Tard posted increases across nearly every major U.S. metric, including total revenue, gross profit, merchandise sales and fuel sales.
Dive Insight:
Couche-Tard continues to gain sales momentum inside its convenience stores even as economic headwinds, geopolitical uncertainty and weak consumer sentiment weigh on U.S. convenience retailers.
During the company’s earnings call on Wednesday, President and CEO Alex Miller said consumers are becoming “increasingly intentional about where they spend,” and that Couche-Tard is leveraging its strengths to adapt to those shifting behaviors.
“Consistent with broader industry trends, elevated living cost and fuel prices continue to weigh on discretionary spending in certain markets,” Miller said. “However, when the proposition is compelling, customers continue to engage.”
That selective spending is reshaping Couche-Tard’s category mix, Miller said.
Sales of carbonated soft drinks and traditional center-store categories, including salty snacks and packaged sweets, remain soft, partly due to the impact of GLP-1 drugs. At the same time, the retailer is seeing growth in functional, protein-rich and better-for-you products, while noncombustible nicotine products “delivered one of their best quarters in recent years,” Miller said.
Foodservice remains Couche-Tard’s “single biggest growth opportunity,” Miller said. The retailer sold around 14 million of its popular meal deals during the quarter, up nearly 20% from this time last year, Miller added.
Miller said Couche-Tard is working with its vendors to “keep the offer fresh” and give customers more ways to engage. He highlighted its Flamin’ Hot boneless chicken wings, which launched in early July and are currently selling at a rate of more than 40,000 units per week.
“More broadly, we're seeing customers increasingly trade up into higher-value prepared food offerings, with hot food mix increasing since launch, demonstrating our ability to pair everyday value with attractive premium offerings,” Miller said. “We're also finding opportunities to further optimize our core assortment, using data and consumer insights to refine menus at both the national and regional level.”
