Why more customers are skipping McMuffins for gas station grub

Fast-food chains are losing their breakfast customers to an unlikely source: gas stations and convenience stores.

Turns out, more and more Americans are getting their morning start by heading to the pump, or their local 7-Eleven, as consumers—hit with skyrocketing prices, inflation, and an overall higher cost of living—are tightening their spending and eating out less.

New data from market research firm Circana found visits to “food-forward convenience stores” increased a whopping 9% for the quarter ending in July, while fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s saw a 1% increase in in-store morning traffic for that same period, as reported by CNBC.

“Food-forward convenience stores” include Pennsylvania-based Wawa, whose coffee bars and pre-made breakfast sandwich are a major draw in the MidAtlantic region, and Casey’s General Store in the Midwest; both of whom are expanding their food offerings, per CNBC.

At the same time, 7-Eleven’s Japanese parent company Seven & i Holdings is betting big on Japanese-style convenience stores—known for their fresh prepared food including their popular egg sandwiches—with a five-year, $13 billion campaign to add 1,000 Japanese-style in-store restaurants in the U.S. with quicker service, and fresher food, according to The New York Times.

“Whether it’s hot food or cold food or any kind of food, we have to lean into how we improve the quality and the experience,” Seven & i Holdings CEO Stephen Dacustold the Times. “That’s what Japan does extraordinarily well.”

Dacustold, a former Walmart executive, who started as CEO of 7-Eleven’s parent company just three months ago, is leading the charge.

In the Midwest, Kwik Trip has also been “upping its game for years with fresh food options” on top of the hot dogs and breakfast sandwiches, according to Catherine Roberts, senior business editor at The Minnesota Star Tribune.