The slew of new regulations governing the sale of tobacco products has convenience store operators scratching their heads and wondering where the next assault will come from and what to do about it. For example:• The federal Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act (PACT Act) went into effect on June 29, 2010. Its goal is to…
Sweet Success
There’s little doubt that bakeries are big. Bakeries, pastry shops and bagel sellers are growing at a rate of 5%, according to AnythingResearch.com. When launching a bakery program, convenience store retailers are urged to start with an in-depth market study that profiles the target customer base, current sales in the market area for the product…
Planning Your Packaging Needs
With foodservice sales booming and more retailers making the leap to fresh foods, operators are turning their attention to take-out packaging and finding that, with all the options and considerations, choosing the proper packaging can be as tricky as selecting the foodservice program itself. “There are so many things to think about when you’re looking…
Express Convenience Centers Comes of Age
At A Glance: Express Convenience Centers Stores: 19 in the Fox Cities region of Wisconsin. Fuel: 17 proprietary-branded Excelerator stati ons and two BP stations. Leadership Team: • John Schmidt, President and CEO, U.S. Venture • Paul Sippl, Director of Branded Fuel Supply, U.S. Venture • Jim Anholzer, General Manager, Express Convenience Centers •…
Fresh from the Farm
Focus on the Franchise Minimum Franchise Requirements: Net Worth: $750, 000; Liquid assets: $250, 000 Targeted growth areas: Swiss Farms is looking for single and multi-unit franchisees in the following counties: Northern Delaware: New Castle County; Eastern Pennsylvania: Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Bucks and Philadelphia County; New York: Nassau and Suffolk County; New Jersey: Camden,…
Strengthening Safe Security
Cash control practices are an essential part of any c-store operation—from having a cash management system in place to training employees in proper security protocol in everyday cash handling and in the event of a robbery. But more often than not, it’s in-house theft that c-stores need to be most vigilant about. “If you have…
Rutter’s Rises as Chain of the Year
Outstanding leadership, great stores and unsurpassed customer service are the hallmarks of the convenience store industry’s exceptional chains. Following these guiding principles, Convenience Store Decisions is proud to announce Rutter’s Farm Stores as the 2010 Convenience Store Chain of the Year. Rutter’s, which supplants Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes as Chain of the Year, is…
Managing Packaged Beverages
New products and core beverages will always drive cold vault sales. So when is the right time—and how often does that right time come—for category managers to reset them? “We do cold vault resets twice a year, which means we’re making fairly minor adjustments all the time,” said Richard Ginther, category manager for Kum &…
Fiscal Systems Honored With Award
Fiscal Systems has received a 2009 IBM Retail Sales Solutions (RSS) Sales Leadership Achievement Award. The award recognizes business partners who have demonstrated superior leadership in the delivery of IBM retail technologies, as well as the knowledge and capability to successfully meet client expectations. Fiscal was honored at the 2010 Retail Store Solutions Business Partner Forum…
Quick Chek’s Summer Event Soars
Quick Chek’s 320-member team of volunteer employees helped welcome more than 112,000 to Readington, N.J.’s Solberg Airport for the 28th Annual Quick Chek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning. The highly-anticipated annual three-day festival held July 23-25, has consistently grown to be the largest summertime hot air balloon and music festival in North America. Quick Chek…