Convenience stores are an essential part of consumers’ daily lives, providing them with quick and easy access to essential items. In recent years, our industry has made the slow turn down the technological highway. This slow implementation of technology has laid the groundwork for many chains to develop and launch loyalty programs and custom apps…
Retailers Wait on FDA Final Rules
More than 100 cigar and cigarette makers, along with several hundred distributors and thousands of c-store retailers are waiting for the next word on tobacco flavor and menthol rulemaking from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Earlier this year, the FDA Center for Tobacco Products indicated it was still holding to an August 2023 final…
LEDs, Energy-Efficiency on the Rise at C-Stores
Convenience store retailers are increasingly considering energy-efficient options when looking to renovate existing sites or build new locations, and installing LEDs is a popular method to accomplish this. In fact, many chains are looking to move even farther forward with their alternative energy goals. TXB, which operates 48-plus locations in Texas and Oklahoma, uses LED…
Candy, Gum & Mint Sales See Upward Momentum
While chocolate dollar sales grew 14% for the four weeks ending Jan. 28, 2023, according to NielsenIQ, consumers have been especially gravitating toward non-chocolate confections, including gum, mints and gummy candy. Confection dollar sales were up 21.4%, while gum sales increased 37% and mint sales ticked up nearly 25% for the same four-week period, per…
C-Store Transformation From Food to Tech
As I step into the role of editor-in-chief, I can’t help but reflect on how much this industry has changed since I first began writing for CStore Decisions as an associate editor in 2009. In those days, c-store retailers were focused on their core customer “Bubba,” a blue-collar, white male stopping in for cigarettes, beer…
Open Pantry Walks for MS
Open Pantry, which operates seven stores in Wisconsin, participated in and sponsored a walk to raise funds for multiple sclerosis (MS) on May 7 in Milwaukee, its team walking under the “Eunice Jean Open Pantry Team” banner. “So, the reason that Open Pantry got involved in this is my mother, Eunice Buhler. When I was…
Parker’s Prioritizes Personalization With Rewards App
As technology continues to improve, convenience store retailers are coming up with new ways to incorporate technology into their stores or to enhance the technology they already have. Savannah, Ga.-based Parker’s Kitchen, which has 74 stores across Georgia and South Carolina, is one c-store that is always working to improve its technology, especially when it…
Dash In Unveils Third-Generation Format
Dash In recently unveiled its third-generation (Series 3) c-store format, showcasing its evolution into a food-centric one-stop shop, complete with an elevated made-to-order menu, a revamped layout and a transformed visual identity. The 55-store chain with 41 franchise locations and 14 company-operated sites in Maryland, Virginia and Delaware plans to aggressively build 15 more Series…
Casey’s Boosts Tech Experience With Apps, AI
Convenience store retailers are taking action to implement new technology programs that are changing the c-store business, and Casey’s is among the chains leading the charge. Casey’s General Stores, which operates 2,400-plus stores in 16 states, has been increasingly innovating with technology, including developing an order fulfillment app, leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and offering delivery.…
How the Fed’s Interest Rate Hikes Are Impacting C-Stores
The economic effects of supply and demand on convenience stores, along with disrupted employment and travel, began with the huge anomaly of the COVID-19 pandemic, not by any regular cycle of inflation. Treating a financial embolism with oxygen deprivation doesn’t make the patient well. A mixed metaphor, but you get the idea. Ignoring the financial…