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Sensor Tower · Abraham Yousef · July 2024
Circle K Circles in on 7-Eleven’s Foothold of the US Convenience Store Market
US convenience chain Circle K has experienced rapid growth in mobile app downloads and users over the past year, driven by the launch and continued promotion of its loyalty program. Despite this growth, Circle K still lags market leader 7-Eleven in key areas on mobile such as the size of its user base, user engagement and user retention according to Sensor Tower estimates.
Key Takeaways:
Per ST data, 7-Eleven has the largest mobile footprint vs its peers with ~54% of US app MAU market share in 2Q24, down from 77% in 2Q21, likely due to rival Circle K’s growth. While Circle K merely held 2-4% of US app MAU market share from 1Q20-1Q23, it saw rapid share gains from 2Q23-2Q24 and is now sitting at 30% of US app MAU market share in the convenience store space, aided by the promotion and subsequent launch of the inner circle, its free loyalty program
Per ST data, Circle K ramped its total US ad spend by 20% QoQ in 3Q23 to promote the launch of its rewards program, compared to +6% for 7-Eleven and -19% for Casey’s in the same period. Circle K’s digital marketing efforts around the launch of its inner circle rewards program largely paid off for the company as downloads from paid sources increased 204% QoQ in 3Q23, compared to -19% for 7-Eleven and -6% for Casey’s
ST data shows that 57% of 7-Eleven’s US ad spend in 2Q24 was allocated towards TikTok and Snapchat, vs 4% for Circle K and none for Casey’s. As a result of 7-Eleven’s heavy allocation of spend towards TikTok and Snapchat, 61% of its impressions in the US came from these two networks vs 2% for Circle K, suggesting that 7-Eleven is more effectively reaching consumers on platforms that boast young, heavily engaged audiences
Per ST’s audience insights data, 20% of US 7-Eleven app users in 2Q24 were between the ages of 18-24, compared to 17% for Circle K and 15% for Casey’s, demonstrating that 7-Eleven has amassed a larger share of users in this critical age demographic. 7-Eleven’s larger share of younger users suggests that the company appeals more towards individuals who are more likely to fall under the single-person household demographic
Per ST data, 7-Eleven saw the strongest growth in both US user time spent and sessions in 2Q24 compared to its peers, which suggests the platform is doing a much better job at keeping people on the app and potentially inspiring return visits or purchases. In 2Q24, 7-Eleven US user time spent per month increased 34% YoY, compared to 23% for Circle K, -9% for Casey’s and -12% for Speedway
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