Pilot Piloting Blockbuster Express
07/16/2010 - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Pilot Corp., which currently operates 45 convenience stores in eastern Tennessee, is dipping its toe into DVD kiosks. "The Pilot convenience stores are in pilot mode with NCR and Blockbuster Express," spokesperson Caitlin Cassady told CSP Daily News. She added, "At this time, there are around 23 Pilot stores with kiosks in the area, and they were placed there between January and March of this year. The companies expect to continue this deployment with a longer relationship."
Dan Fleming, vice president of operations for Pilot's 40 convenience stores, told The Knoxville News Sentinel, "There is a place to get gas on every corner. This adds to the convenience we are already offering."
While dozens of Knoxville stores have chosen to go with redbox, Pilot is taking a gamble on the relatively new Blockbuster Express, said the report. The large blue and yellow kiosks with 32-inch screens are the latest offering from NCR. Fleming said he first saw the machines at a trade show two or three years ago. "It took us a while to find the right fit," Fleming said. "There were a couple of others in the bidding," including redbox.
Fleming said the name recognition associated with the kiosks was a major factor in choosing Blockbuster Express over the competitors; however, there were other reasons. "We felt the variety of movies they offered was an advantage," he added.
Blockbuster Express and redbox operate in much the same way. Both machines offer many movie choices, with most renting for $1 a night. In some areas, Blu-ray titles also are offered. The movies can be rented in one location and returned at another. Field representatives stock the machines on a regular basis and users need a credit card for payment.
Blockbuster Express machines are at 22 area Pilot stores as well as about a half-dozen Food City and Weigel's stores. Fleming said Pilot plans to add at least 10 more machines.
Chris Goodrich, a redbox spokesperson, told the paper that consumers can find more than 150 redbox machines in the Knoxville metro area. Nationwide there are more than 22,000 redbox machines in operation. Blockbuster Express operates 5,000 machines with plans to add another 5,000 by yearend, said the report said.
For Pilot, the video kiosks are not expected to be huge moneymakers, the report said. For the company, it just made good business sense. Blockbuster Express "basically came to us with a machine that fits our blueprint," Fleming said. "It brings customers into the store."
Source: Convenience Store/Petroleum |
