The majority of the UK's leading convenience retailers rely upon CACI for the market intelligence behind their strategic store location and store ranging (clustering) decisions. To enable these clients to accurately define convenience store catchment areas CACI has created the Convenience Catchment Model (CCM). The CCM is a radii based catchment area model. The size of the radii is flexed according to two key influencing factors - population and density and competition.

The initial size of the catchment area is determined by how densely populated the area is. We do this because we know from experience of working in the C-Store sector that the more rural an area is the further consumers are prepared to travel for a convenience purchase. For example, the CCM reflects that a convenience store catchment area radius might be 0.5 miles in Central London or 3 miles in rural Yorkshire.

The CCM catchment size is then further adjusted to take into account the presence of competition. This second stage in the definition of the catchment considers the effect of both multiple and independent C-Stores. Furthermore, and again based on our convenience retailing experience, it is worth noting that the presence of competition does not always have the effect of shrinking the size of the catchment area.

This is because Convenience retailers often choose locations in close proximity to other C-store operators. In this case the accumulative effect of a 'cluster' of retailers actually makes the size of the catchment area bigger. Whereas, a competitive C-store operator that falls at the outer edge of the initial catchment will result in a smaller catchment area.

The result is an accurate catchment that reflects a consumer's willingness to travel and the presence of competitors.

CACI has also used the CCM in a project for a major UK bank to define the catchment areas of forecourts for their planning of ATM locations. As such, we know that in contrast to simple radii catchments the CCM is also a proven, accurate way of defining forecourt and convenience catchment areas.

CACI can pre-calculate a CCM catchment for every postcode in the country i.e. any existing or potential C-Store location. These can then be held and used in InSite. Many of our current convenience retailer InSite users already employ the CCM in this way.