Tesoro Corp. has instituted a series of safeguards to keep employees out of harm’s way. Frank Coletta has every reason to take his job very seriously. If he eases up on the rules and regulations just a little bit, employees could get hurt, or worse. So this savvy industry veteran has no plans to go…

 By John Lofstock  When the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) released its State of the Industry report in April, we learned the state of the industry is good. Sales are up, profits are up and operating costs are down. But this hardly tells the whole story. Almost a year after hurricanes Katrina and Rita…

For all the talk about gasoline volatility and dwindling fuel margins, there's no shortage of mega-retailers looking to fillup on fuel profits. Alongside traditional hypermarketers like Wal-Mart, Costco and BJ's, is a new breed of operators hoping to cash in on America's growing fuel demand. This includes the nation's largest home improvement retailer, Home Depot,…

Growing up in New York City few things are as natural to me as eating out. Even now with my second child on the way, a minimum of two meals a day are eaten at a restaurant or convenience store near wherever the day's business takes me. The kitchen table is more of a convenient…

Convenience Store Decisions celebrates its first annual Reader's Choice Awards issue by recognizing the Top Performers in two dozen categories and subcategories. The awards are a significant milestone for CSD as we move forward with our commitment to helping convenience store marketers find the solutions they need to grow profitability. The Reader's Choice Awards are…

It hardly seems appropriate for me to write about the joy of producing Convenience Store Decisions' milestone 200th issue, especially since I've been here barely long enough to figure out the voice mail system. But while my contribution to CSD encompasses all of six issues, I have had the good fortune of literally growing up…

At the recent Anheuser-Busch symposium for trade journalists, Bob Lachky, executive vice president of global industry development, said among the many reasons for the brewer's success is innovation, aggressive marketing and keeping its product line fresh. Convenience Store Decisions is proud to share those same values. To kick off the new year, CSD has hit…

Hey, what do you call it when a group of executives from financial servicesfirms spends the night at a bed and breakfast? (Sounds like a joke, but it isn

Welcome back to Las Vegas—the adopted home of this year’s NACS Show following the tragic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in the Southeast. Our hearts remain with our friends, relatives and colleagues in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and we wish them a quick and full recovery. New Orleans is one of my favorite cities to visit.…

The images we see and stories we hear run the gamut, from disturbing to redeeming. America