Sour Flavors Surge in Convenience Stores

Experts note that the popularity of sour foods and beverages is on the rise across various retail channels, yet convenience stores have not fully leveraged this trend.

Sour Flavor Trend Continues to Evolve

According to 7-Eleven Inc., the sour flavor trend remains a driving force, with “Consumer interest in sour candy continues to be strong, driven by shoppers who are seeking bolder flavor experiences, sensory excitement and products that deliver an element of surprise.” This sentiment is echoed by Sally Lyons Wyatt, global executive vice president and chief advisor for consumer goods and foodservice insights at Circana, who describes sour as a “mature trend, but it has active pockets of growth and re-invention.” The sour flavor profile has expanded into multiple categories, including energy drinks.

The sales data for sour foods and beverages supports this trend, with a 10.8% increase in dollar sales and a 6.9% rise in unit sales across all retail types over the 52 weeks ending Aug. 9, as reported by Circana.

Convenience Store Sales and Key Categories

In the convenience store sector, sour product sales have seen a 5.5% increase in dollar sales and a 1.5% growth in unit sales. Nonchocolate candy is the dominant category for sour sales in convenience stores, accounting for approximately 64% of dollar sales, followed closely by energy drinks. Lyons Wyatt highlights the importance of sour flavors in convenience stores, stating “Within c-stores, because of immediate consumption, sour is definitely an important part of the story.”

Emerging Sour Flavors

While the sour trend is gaining momentum, not all products incorporating sour flavors are experiencing success, according to Lyons Wyatt. Certain sour gummy products in convenience stores have seen declines, whereas newer, more distinctive options like sour black cherry are performing well. Sour blue raspberry-flavored products are currently the fastest-growing flavor in convenience stores, with a 33% surge in sales over the past year, as per Circana data.

Lemonade is another popular sour option, with Wawa’s Shark Splash Lemonade featuring a tart cherry syrup as an ingredient, as noted by Emily Murawski, research and insights manager at Datassential. This tart cherry syrup can also be added to custom beverages, offering flexibility and variety.

As consumers become more adventurous in their preferences, sour options provide convenience stores with an opportunity to introduce unexpected twists on familiar products through innovative flavor pairings, textures, and formats, according to 7-Eleven. “While Slurpee drinks have given us a playful platform for sour innovation, we’re also seeing the flavor resonate across our candy portfolio, including 7-Select Sour Neon Gummi Worms which remain a customer favorite, and sour varieties alongside formats like freeze-dried candy,” the retailer noted.

Lyons Wyatt also cited sour flavors’ place in innovation and experimentation as an important avenue for c-stores.

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Strategic Assortment Planning for Sour Products

Sally Lyons Wyatt recommends organizing sour product assortments into three key roles:

• Core: Retain proven sour candy formats and recognizable profiles, such as assorted sour fruit, sour-then-sweet, watermelon, and blue raspberry.
• Growth: Provide greater visibility to emerging winners, including black cherry, intense sour, and crossover energy-drink flavors.
• Discovery: Allocate a controlled portion of the assortment for limited editions, spicy-sour, chamoy, pickle, tropical, and cross-category innovations.

Murawski notes that despite sour being a mature flavor, there is still ample opportunity for reimagining and innovating within this space. In the areas of desserts and non-alcoholic beverages, convenience stores could explore emerging flavors like the citrusy notes of a margarita, which could translate well into ice cream, shakes, cookies, or donuts. Key lime is also identified as a potential top-seller.

“Any of these sour item-as-flavor trends are great choices for c-stores as they’re super approachable, taking a familiar item and using it as a flavor in an unexpected format,” Murawski said.

Cross-Category Innovation and Merchandising Strategies

Lyons Wyatt suggests that convenience stores can effectively bring sour candy flavors into beverages and create connections between candy and beverages through “flavor families” like black cherry and blue raspberry. She also encourages operators to adopt hybrid or layered flavors. “Consumers are responding to flavors that are this layering effect, such as sour plus spicy,” she added.

Sour flavors, such as dill pickle, are beginning to make an impact in the salty snacks category, a fast-growing sub-segment in convenience stores, according to Lyons Wyatt. Cross-category experimentation is something that convenience stores can do better than any other channel, said Lyons Wyatt, thanks to their smaller footprint and wide, established assortment of candy and beverages.

Making these connections visible through merchandising is key. Retailers can place complementary candy and beverage flavors together in secondary displays or use simple signage like “sweet,” “sour,” or “extreme,” as suggested by Lyons Wyatt. The strategic placement of sour energy drinks in cold vaults, paired with candy at high-traffic points, can encourage additional purchases.

Future Growth Prospects for Sour Flavors

The future of sour flavors looks promising, with sour ranking in the 85th percentile for future growth potential, according to Datassential Menucast. This indicates that sour’s growth is expected to outperform 85% of all other foods, beverages, and ingredients over the next four years.