Try as they might, the triumvirate at Nine West Marketplace in Goldsby, Okla., just couldn’t get the beer drinkers in their small Oklahoma town to help themselves to the brews in the beer cave. "We tried everything under the sun to get them to go in there," said Carri Moore-Colwell, one of three owners at…
Shoppernomics 2.0: The Not-So-Perfect Storm
There’s a host of ingredients contaminating the retail environment these days, with shoppers dogged by rising costs in energy, food and basic necessities. As a result, shopping habits are being radically reshaped in this new and uncertain environment, said Thom Blischok, president of consulting and innovation at Information Resources Inc. (IRI). "We are living in…
Zarco 66 Expanding Alternative Fuels
Zarco 66 Earth Friendly Fuels last month celebrated the official grand opening of its first sustainable and alternative fuel site in Lawrence, Kan. The Zarco location not only dispenses ethanol and biodiesel produced within a 75-mile radius of the facility, it also represents an innovative vision for sustainable construction and energy consumption. Dubbed the "Green…
Atlas Oil to Acquire 23 BP Sites in Indiana
Atlas Oil Co., of Taylor, Mich., has reached an agreement with BP Products North America to acquire and supply 23 BP branded stores in northwest Indiana. The sale, which is scheduled to close in the fall, includes a number of retail locations owned by BP, several dealer-supplied sites and an agreement for Atlas to operate…
By the Numbers
» 3 Years Pennsylvania resident Kathy Wallick gets free fuel as part of Rutter’s Farm Stores’ gas giveaway. She is the first of four grand prize winners in the c-store chain’s promotion, which runs through Aug. 24. » 10 Optimum number of seconds for a pumptop TV advertisement to foster greater consumer recall of advertising…
Private-Label Energy Boosts Profits
A little more than a year after teaming with Boo Koo Holdings Inc. to launch GazZu Energy, a proprietary 16-ounce energy drink, the Circle K brand is taking the next logical step and extending the private-label energy lineup to include 2-ounce shots. Dubbed GazZu Shooters, the shots are more than lightening in a bottle for…
NACS: Visa’s Move to Reduce Debit Holds a “Smokescreen”
With retailers and consumers struggling from the card companies’ policy of placing excessive holds on credit- and debit-card transactions at the fuel pumps, Visa announced a plan to reduce hold times to just a couple of hours. Right now, issuing banks impose a hold on funds in their customers’ bank accounts for an amount exceeding…
C-Stores 101
There’s a profitable parable tucked somewhere inside the hodge-podge of mix-and-match cereal containers laid out on a table in the University of Rhode Island’s Corner Store. Something deeply religious, or at least something that screams "diversity" and "open-mindedness." For every Tony the Tiger, there’s a Lucky Charms leprechaun. For every Cookie Crisp, there’s a Cinnamon…
The Wild Ride Continues
As if industry operators didn’t have enough to worry about, ExxonMobil dealers were greeted with the news that the Irving, Texas oil giant decided to exit direct-store operations by divesting 825 company-owned and -operated stations as well as 1,400 stations leased to dealers. This decision thrust those dealers into an anxious state of limbo, an…
Cooking up Surefire Profits
As rising food and gas prices and killer credit card interchange fees are making for one hellacious economic hurricane, a c-store’s foodservice program could prove to be the fallout shelter. That was the consensus from c-store retailers and researchers participating in the first installment of CSD’s Foodservice Webcast Series, sponsored by Sam’s Club, on June…