Increasing Access to WIC through Discount Variety Stores: Findings from Qualitative Research

BackgroundMany low-income neighborhoods do not include a full-service grocery store. In these communities, discount variety stores (DVS) can be convenient points of food access. However, no identified DVS are authorized to accept Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC) benefits.ObjectiveOne national DVS retailer implemented WIC in 10 stores located in low-income communities in North Carolina over a 10-month pilot period to assess WIC feasibility.MethodsTo better understand the facilitators and barriers to WIC implementation from the perspective of DVS staff, we analyzed 36 in-depth interviews with employees of this DVS chain at corporate, manager, and store clerk levels.ResultsMost participants provided positive feedback about implementing and offering WIC. Many store employees had personal experience participating in WIC, which increased their understanding of the WIC shopping experience. Store staff’s prior WIC participation and customers’ proximity to DVS locations were facilitators to implementation. Primary barriers included limited choice of store products for customers, complicated or unclear labeling of WIC products, and difficulty training employees to process WIC vouchers.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that whereas most employees viewed WIC positively, barriers related to product selection and training must be addressed. Notably, North Carolina’s recent change to an electronic system to process WIC transactions requires minimal manual employee training and should address several barriers to implementation. However, the computer system upgrades necessary to accept electronic WIC transactions may be a barrier for DVS to continued WIC acceptance. Future research is needed to evaluate implementation of electronic WIC transactions in DVS.