Circle K
Global digital in-store solutions for fuel and convenience retail
Scaling digital in-store experiences across 3,000+ stores and 9,500 digital touchpoints
Circle K, a global leader in fuel and convenience retail, partnered with Visual Art to transform the in-store experience through a scalable digital signage and in-store experience management solution. Today, Visual Art is an integrated partner in Circle K’s in-store concept, delivering a global digital in-store ecosystem that drives sales, improves customer experience and enables in-store retail media opportunities across thousands of locations.
What started as small pilot projects in Sweden has evolved into a large-scale international deployment across Europe and the United States, covering:
~3,100 stores
~9,500 digital screens
Today, Visual Art is an integrated partner in Circle K’s in-store concept, delivering a global digital in-store ecosystem that drives sales, improves customer experience and enables scalable retail communication.
9,500
digital touchpoints
3,100
stores
13
markets
The challenge: Increasing food and beverage sales in a fast-paced retail environment
In convenience retail, purchase decisions are made in seconds. For Circle K, creating a clear, engaging and effective in-store communication system was critical.
Key challenges included:
Limited ability to upsell food and beverage products
Difficulty communicating product quality and range clearly
Need for a more premium and consistent in-store experience
Lack of scalable tools for managing menus across markets
The objective was to modernise the in-store environment and use digital signage to drive sales in key categories:
- Hot food
- Coffee
- Baked goods
The solution: A full-service digital signage and in-store experience platform
Visual Art delivered a complete end-to-end digital in-store solution, combining strategy, design, content and technology.
Digital menu boards and in-store screens
The solution includes a full ecosystem of retail digital signage:
Digital menu boards
Digital coffee menus
Car wash screens
Merchandising screens (candies, gum, chocolate)
These screens create a consistent and engaging in-store customer experience while enabling real-time updates and campaign flexibility.
IXM platform – centralised digital signage CMS
All screens and content are powered by Visual Art’s IXM platform, an enterprise digital signage software and retail CMS.
The platform enables Circle K to:
Manage content across thousands of screens
Ensure consistency across markets
Update menus and campaigns in real time
Scale digital in-store communication globally
Data-driven design and menu optimisation
A key part of the solution was the development of a design framework and centralised playbook for digital menu boards.
Menu structures were tested and optimised based on performance
Design decisions were driven by measurable sales impact
A scalable playbook ensures consistency across all European markets
Enabling an in-store retail media network
As part of the digital in-store solution, Visual Art enables Circle K to leverage its screen network as an in-store retail media platform.
By using digital menu boards and in-store screens as media channels, Circle K can:
Run targeted campaigns at the point of purchase
Promote high-margin and strategic products
Unlock new revenue opportunities through retail media
Adapt messaging dynamically based on time, location or campaigns
Powered by the IXM platform, this creates a scalable in-store retail media network across thousands of stores.
From pilot to global rollout
The collaboration between Circle K and Visual Art demonstrates the ability to scale from local innovation to global deployment.
Pilot phase in 2016
Initial projects in Sweden focused on:
Digital menu boards
Coffee screens
Expansion across Europe
Following successful pilots, the solution expanded to:
Sweden
Norway
Denmark
Baltics
Ireland
With ongoing expansion into additional European markets.
Recent rollout and standardisation
A major rollout phase included:
Denmark
Ireland
Baltics
Key focus areas:
Unified IXM platform deployment
Full refresh of menu board design
Implementation of a centralized design playbook
The Result: Proven sales uplift and a scalable global retail platform
By combining digital signage, design strategy and a scalable CMS, Circle K has transformed its in-store communication into a powerful sales driver.
Business Impact
Increased sales in key categories:
Hot food
Coffee
Baked goods
Improved upsell through digital menu boards
Stronger product visibility and clarity
Enabled in-store retail media capabilities across a global store network
Increased ability to run targeted campaigns and promotions
Created foundation for future retail media revenue streams
Operational impact
More modern and premium in-store environment
Improved perception of food quality and freshness
Faster and clearer decision-making for customers
Customer experience
Standardized communication across markets
Scalable platform for future growth
Centralized control of in-store messaging
Technology: IXM – In-Store Experience Management Platform
The Circle K solution is powered by Visual Art’s IXM platform, a scalable enterprise digital signage software that also enables in-store retail media and campaign management at scale.
IXM supports:
Digital signage networks at scale
In-store retail media and campaign management
Cloud-based content distribution
API-first and hardware-agnostic integrations
Key figures
~3,100 stores globally
~9,500 digital screens
Europe + United States deployment
End-to-end solution: strategy, design, content and platform
Do you want to know more about how Digital Signage can help your business?
Get in touch with Andreas Ström, to find out more!