Electric vehicles promise to not only revolutionize various motoring industries but according to The Washington Post, could even hurt the beverage and convenience store industries.
Analysts from Morgan Stanley claim that as more electric vehicles hit the road, the number of motorists shopping at convenience stores after they’ve fuelled up could fall dramatically. This may also have a significant impact on beverage companies themselves.
Take Monster Beverages, for example. Roughly 63 per cent of its U.S. sales come from gas and convenience stores and its drinks are usually purchased impulsively at such stores. What’s more, Jeff Lenard from the National Association of Convenience Stores, asserts that roughly 60 per cent of all gas station profits are made from items sold inside, not the fuel itself.
“Beverages drive sales, and beverages drive profits at convenience stores, so any competition that could reduce those sales and those profits is a concern.
“However, I think that stores will do what they always do: They’ll find a better way to compete,” Lenard added.
These potentially disastrous effects are still some way off, however. ADD Systems industry expert Grant McAllister doesn’t think that electric vehicles will become common enough to have a lasting influence on the convenience store industry for at least another 20 years.