Upside

Deflation has arrived — but it seems restaurants didn’t get the memo. This month’s BLS Consumer Price Index shows that the cost of dining out (up 4.1% year-over-year) continues to outpace inflation. Despite all the headlines about new menus and discounts, the data shows these are the exception to the overall trend. ❗The good news is that we’re seeing the price of gas going down, which is helping drive down prices on this month’s basket of goods. Though to date we’ve seen just one month of deflation — and driven by fuel, which is famously volatile — it’s still indicative of cooling prices. Here are the numbers: Month-over-month changes: 📈 Core inflation excluding food & energy: 0.1% 📉 Total inflation: -0.1% ⛽ Gas (all types): -3.8% 🛒 Food at home: 0.1% 🍔 Food away from home: 0.4% Year-over-year changes: 📈 Core inflation excluding food & energy: 3.3% 📈 Total inflation: 3.0% ⛽ Gas (all types): -2.5% 🛒 Food at home: 1.1% 🍔 Food away from home: 4.1% You can read the full BLS release here: https://bit.ly/3O5zHpr

With fuel demand in flux, the pressure is on for c-stores to drive growth. Although the headlines report higher c-store sales numbers year-over-year, there's a bigger story hiding in the data. Join us 🗓️Wednesday, July 24, at 2 p.m. ET for a live conversation with Upside’s David Poulnot and c-store industry veteran Art S. as they discuss: 💸 Inflation-adjusted sales across the industry 👥 The consumer and market forces behind those trends 🧠 What c-store retailers need to know before making investment decisions for the rest of the year Sign up now: https://bit.ly/4cultu3

Glad to see reports of improved buying power, and this change in perspective. A recent White House analysis found that the combination of declining inflation and rising wages are making it easier for the typical U.S. consumer to afford the week’s groceries. This is a marked shift from the “greedflation” arguments we’ve been reading about recently. It now takes about 3.6 hours for typical non-managerial workers to earn enough money to buy the groceries they need for a week — about the same amount of time as in 2019. In the same way that it’s meaningful to measure prices as “inflation-adjusted,” it’s also meaningful to measure them as “income-adjusted.” And over the past year, wages have moved ahead faster than grocery prices. Grocery Dive has more on the WH analysis here: https://bit.ly/4bG8dkB

Onboarding can make or break the employee experience. That’s why, at Upside, we make it a priority to get new hires started on the right foot. This Built In article featuring Upside’s Melissa Jamison describes our new employee experience and why we believe it’s so important: https://bit.ly/3VOXW11 #career #employeeonboarding

It feels like there’s a fee frenzy out there. Additional charges here, and there… consumers just want to know what they’re being charged, and why. Where are these fees coming from? 💰 It’s getting a lot more expensive to run a business. Many of the fees being tacked on today — like a restaurant service fee, or a charge for using a credit card instead of paying in cash — exist just to cover the operator’s costs. 💰💰 The “frenzy” is largely fed by third party providers. Most of the “hidden” fees you see come from services like delivery, personal shopping, and subscriptions — like ASAP or long-distance delivery, service fees, regulatory fees, and more. Read more about why prices have gotten so high, and what retailers can do to rebuild trust with skeptical, wallet-conscious consumers 👇 https://bit.ly/45MQBlN #inflation #pricingstrategy #profitability

Meet Kate Naranjo! Kate is a Strategic Account Manager on our Retailer Go-To-Market team. Read about her advice for those looking to get into account management, and what she loves about her team: https://bit.ly/3XYjCcH

There’s a gap between loyalty membership and loyal behavior, but there’s also an opportunity — to turn average loyalty members into “super-users.” Upside data shows that more than 70% of loyalty members visit a retailer less than twice a month (or even not at all). Plus, over half of members churn within a year of sign-up. But loyalty members aren’t a monolith. Within any membership group, “super-users” make up about 22% — yet they generate 46% of *total* transactions and revenue. How can you create more super-users among your loyalty base? Find out: https://bit.ly/3VFPAaB #consumerinsights #loyaltyprograms

💡 Great summary from David Poulnot on some of the latest retail insights

🚨 Just one more day to sign up! Join us this Thursday at 1 pm ET for a webinar featuring retail executives in grocery, fuel, and restaurant as they share their real-world experience with loyalty investments. Save your spot here: https://bit.ly/3yEUP2p

The future of IRL customer acquisition is personalized, and major retailers like Terrible's, Circle K, and Road Ranger partner with Upside to make it happen. 💬 “In many cases, a customer’s experience is beginning prior to visiting a location and starts with why they want to stop there,” said Peter Rasmussen, CEO and founder of Convenience and Energy Advisors, in a recent Convenience Store News article. Upside VP of Multi-vertical Sales David Poulnot is also quoted, stressing the importance of c-store customer acquisition for long-term business growth: 💬 “That comes with investing in ways to personalize the experience to consumers, both at the pump and before they get to the stores.” Read the article here👇 https://bit.ly/3KQOdkz