Chicago-based c-store chain Foxtrot Market has launched a new campaign, Good Stuff Delivered. Rooted in the idea that enjoyment can be found in the ordinary everyday, now more than ever, the campaign builds on the company’s core playfulness while emphasizing the range of its on-demand, app-powered delivery service. Foxtrot has built one of the leading truly…
Navigating Foodservice in 2020
CStore Decisions caught up with Carlos Acevedo, director of foodservice for Temple, Texas-based CEFCO Convenience Stores, which operates 205 c-stores, to gain insights on managing foodservice during a pandemic, food trends to watch and the must-have equipment pieces for c-store kitchens. CStore Decisions (CSD): How have you seen the pandemic impact foodservice/food best practices? Carlos…
Love’s Opens Largest Location Yet at Over 17,000 Square Feet
Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores opened its largest location ever Madison, Ga. The new store, located off Interstate 20, adds 100 jobs and 108 truck parking spaces to Morgan County. “We’re excited to open our largest travel stop ever — at over 17,000 square feet — and hire about 100 team members from the…
NAG/YEO Conference’s Hallmark InfoExchanges More Than a Virtual Success
The Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 19, session of the 2020 National Advisory Group (NAG)/Young Executives Organization (YEO) Virtual Conference featured what has become a hallmark of the annual conference — its InfoExchange Breakout Sessions. As in years past, the small-group meetings attended by convenience industry retail executives provided a truly rare opportunity for direct networking and…
Tang Mart Unleashes Dragon Design
Tang Mart is standing out in Alabama. The four-store chain, based in Gadsden, Ala., is reimaging its locations to incorporate its playful Tang Mart brand design. It recently launched a new bean-to-cup coffee program, and it’s strategizing to expand its foodservice program and double its store count in the next five years. Releasing the Dragon…
Beyond CBD
Major players in the cannabidiol (CBD) industry are going full speed ahead on innovation despite growing economic uncertainty for consumers. Innovation in dosage and ingredients are helping to keep CBD brands top-of-mind, attract holistic wellness seekers, and offer easier-to-understand products for a growing consumer base that is turning to CBD to manage stress and…
Circle K AI Pilot ‘Should be a Wake-Up Call’ for Convenience Retailers
Alimentation Couche-Tard recently announced that it’s piloting touchless, autonomous checkout at Circle K via Standard Cognition technology, starting in the Phoenix, Ariz., area, with more stores to follow. Richard Crone of Crone Consulting, LLC said the news is big for c-store retailers and point-of-sale vendors alike; this Arizona store will mark the first-ever retrofit of…
Sizing Up Supply Chain Opportunities
From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as regulations changed, shopping trends evolved with them, affecting supply chains and c-stores’ overall operations. “There were a lot of limitations on purchases that consumers could make,” said Keith Daniels, partner at Carl Marks Advisors, which provides financial and operational advisory services. “That was being felt in convenience…
NAG/YEO Conference: Communication is Key to Building Valued Team Partners
The third installment of the 2020 NAG/YEO Virtual Conference, “Effective Leadership: The Best Ways to Manage People,” provided plenty of eye-opening strategies and observations to help convenience industry executives elevate their employee partners. The session was a Young Executives Organization (YEO)-members exclusive to help young professionals develop the characteristics of great leadership and excel in…
C-Stores Navigate Uncertain Economic Landscape
As early as February, Raymond Huff predicted COVID-19 would impact his Russell’s Convenience Stores business. What he didn’t anticipate was a whopping 85% drop in sales when states locked down. The president of Denver-based HJB Convenience Corp., parent company of Russell’s, Huff has spent his career surmounting impossible challenges, but the economic fallout due to…