Destination Junction 14, an Irish state-of-the art-service station.

Junction 14, a state-of-the art-service station located off the M7 at Monasterevin, Co Kildare, Ireland, has transformed from being a forecourt with food to a food court with fuel.

It’s now a destination for motorists who are looking to take a planned break from the road in order to recharge, choose from a smorgasbord of new food and beverage brands and take advantage of the site’s numerous facilities.

Planned pre-pandemic and re-developed during the Covid crisis, Junction 14 is now fully open, save for social distancing restrictions in the seated areas, welcoming business people and truck drivers during the week and family groups at the weekend.

While it’s been a roller coaster ride, in and out of lockdowns, Junction 14 is firmly back on track, as store manager Gavin Moran explains: “We have recorded 10-15% growth on 2018 during the summer months and that’s continuing in Q3 and Q4,” he says.

“People are on the move. Ireland has a good motorway network now. The M7 forms part of the Dublin to Limerick main arterial road. There are 36,000 cars a day passing by our door and 10% are coming in,” he says.

Junction 14 provides numerous reasons to visit. While truck drivers will visit the site to take a break from the wheel, larger groups enjoy exploring the different food counters on ‘Main Street’ and then re-congregate in the communal seating areas.

And, while it presently takes a little while longer to get guests safely seated, due to Covid regulations including contact tracing, Junction 14 is now attracting regulars versus once-in-a-while customers.

Opened in 2011 by the Lidon Group, the retailer took the decision to expand the business in 2014. “It had quickly become apparent that food was the biggest part of the business,” recalls Moran.

“We drew up plans but soon realised that the plans weren’t big enough so we did even more planning to make it bigger but at least we did not build it and build it again,” Moran smiles.

An improved food and beverage offer and extra seating were integral to the initial plans but Junction 14 also consulted with its customers to determine exactly what was required of the new-look space.

The business conducted 400 face-to-face interviews and 1,200 online surveys, drawing on its social media platforms and customer data base.

“We asked “what do you think of us?”, remembers Moran. “Coffee was the number one answer. I believe that coffee is the new Guinness in Ireland – it’s a fashion item,” he maintains.

In response, Junction 14 enhanced its coffee offer with the Insomnia barista brand, served alongside coffee available from the site’s other concessions.

Healthier options were another customer request so the retailer added in Chopped, already available at two other Lidon Group sites, to the mix.

Pizza was also a favourite in the research and Junction 14 has introduced Papa John’s alongside its sister brand Supermac’s as a natural pairing.

Mexican was a popular response too. Junction 14 has brought in Zambrero, a new brand in the Irish market. The retailer is operating the brand as a franchise model, which gives it the flexibility to move staff around the business, Moran says.

“Irish people love Mexican food and it’s done really well,” he reports.

Subway is another customer favourite and appeals to a wide demographic, while indulgence is provided with Gino’s Gelato. J14 is one of three franchisees for the brand. “Everything is ‘made from scratch’ with organic milk. It’s labour intensive but the product is phenomenal,” Moran says.

He’s keen to encourage artistic staff members and those with an interest in baking to get involved with the brand.

“It’s creative and all about shapes, displays and colours – sorbets in the summer and more indulgent products in the winter; plus crepes, waffles and milk shakes,” he explains.

The site’s Spar store was also completely redeveloped during the revamp and the retailer’s popular deli was rebranded to Mayfield Fare.

Hand in hand with the new food and beverage offer, Junction 14 addressed the seating, which was under pressure at peak times when people were on the move to events such as concerts and sports fixtures.

“We did not want a big open hall as we are known for our atmosphere so we have created smaller zones with different lighting,” he says. “The design is cutting edge and pioneering. Our designers took us on a journey and out of our comfort zone – it is very ‘out there’ but it works,” Moran adds.

Seating has been chosen to actively promote an average 30 minute dwell time with capacity for 260 in normal times but currently restricted to 100 due to social distancing guidelines; while the seating area in Gino’s Gelato is yet to open.

“When we return to normal life, the walls will come down and we won’t require 2m distancing,” Moran says.

Work started on the revamp in May 2019 and was due for completion in April 2020 but then Covid hit and the motorists and workers were suddenly gone.

“We went from 135 employees to 15 overnight and the business dropped by 86%,” Moran remembers. “I’ve never seen figures so low and we were operating 24/7. The lockdown affected everybody but we were in the middle of the revamp so we were in a temporary building with a temporary shop, deli and seating area. When you walked through the door it was like the Marie Celeste,” he says.

The Spar store was completed by mid-July 2020 and the rest of the food brands followed on two weeks later, enabling J14 to make the most of the August Bank Holiday weekend with the food court and food offers fully open.

The second national lockdown in January 2021 enforced the closure of the indoor seating area once again. This time around, however, the retailer has been on the front foot. It has restyled an outdoor seating area into a spacious plaza with benches and seating for up to 100 people and has freshly landscaped the surrounding area and introduced fresh bedding.

A newly expanded and improved children’s play area is located nearby and Moran reveals there are plans for a new indoor kids’ play area in 2022, when legislation will allow.

As a parent, Moran can completely appreciate the appeal of these facilities and why families purposely pay them a visit. They are places where parents can watch their children run around in an enclosed play area, while enjoying a leisurely cup of coffee, he says.

New exterior developments at J14 include the launch of Ireland’s first E-charging site providing four super chargers and two slow chargers, enabling a motorist to fully recharge within 30-40 minutes at speed.

According to Moran, the site is constantly busy with all chargers in use at peak times and attracting a broad spectrum of car brands: Tesla, VW, BMW and Audi and not just the Nissan Leaf.

The facilities for truck drivers have been expanded too. There are now spaces for 60 vehicles but the site is accommodating up to 75 trucks a night on site, as truck drivers make use of the additional coach parking bays, which have increased from four to 11.

Coaches are beginning to return as a regular fixture as events – concerts and matches – are reinstated. Moran reports Junction 14 is now creating its own marketing and staff roster based around that events calendar, which is crucial due to the serious shortage of labour in Europe.

Moran reveals the retailer currently has 20 full time positions to fill, for example.The business is becoming increasingly inventive in attracting people on board, he adds; especially as there is a trend for people to work fewer hours, requiring the company to hire two employees to fulfil one role.

Junction 14’s latest initiative is offering hours to parents, who have children at school, during lunch breaks etc.

“We are asking the company to give us the ideas and suggestions about what  may work. We host round table talks – everyone’s opinion counts,” Moran says.

Flexibility in the work force is now paramount, Moran adds. J14 sets great store in cross training, for example, and winning feedback from customers as the business evolves and grows.

The retailer is currently winning feedback via QR codes located at the counters. In lockdown, meanwhile, it launched a home delivery service and hired an ex air stewardess to follow up on the customer experience and then take positive action.

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“It’s one thing to get feedback but you must address it,” Moran asserts. “We have to learn from our mistakes,” he says, adding that all staff members undergo training in a customer service programme every six months.

Mystery shoppers are also deployed to incentivise and motivate the team.

“Just because you have a mask on does not mean the customer can’t see you are not enjoying your job,” he says. “The customer approach has changed,” he continues. “In lockdown they didn’t mind waiting to be served but now people are more grouchy.”

Junction 14 is rising to the challenge. All the new food and beverage brands are performing in line with projections, Moran reports. The business is also looking ahead.

“We are anticipating a big influx of tourists next year – we are focused on 2022,” Moran says.

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Junction 14 is one of the many innovative Irish retail sites you can see on Insight’s ‘Dublin Convenience Market Focus’ 23-25 March 2022.

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