Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc. launched the U-Scan Genesis Carousel self-checkout system. The Carousel model offers increased capacity for large orders with a rotating bagging platform containing six bag racks and the option to add a secondary bagging platform. The rotating platform provides shoppers with easy accessibility to the bag racks and limits body strain caused [...]
Cherry Electrical Products announces the introduction of its new LPOS Series full-size keyboard line. This new POS QWERTY keyboard line features an enhanced key layout for POS and commercial applications. LPOS keyboards are available with or without a 3-track Magnetic Card Reader (MSR) and High Resolution Touchpad. LPOS keyboards provide 131-position key layout on models [...]
In an effort to keep America healthy, FUZE Beverage continues to drive the crusade to help fight childhood obesity by introducing the all new 12-ounce PowerFlex plastic bottle. The new package will be available in school vending machines across the country. All of FUZE’s products meet new guidelines for school beverages. FUZE’s healthy infusion of [...]
CipherLab, an innovator in Automated Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) for the retail, warehouse and distribution markets, launched the 9400 Series Industrial Mobile Computer, the second CipherLab product to support Microsoft Windows CE 5.0. Designed to provide wireless anywhere mobility through compliance with all popular wireless communications platforms (including Bluetooth, WiFi and Quad-band EDGE RF), [...]
The bottled water industry has recently come under attack by critics who say they are concerned about the quantity of water bottles going to our landfills and the energy used transporting them to market. But, Kim Jeffery, president and CEO of Nestle Waters North America Inc., said those who propose bans on bottled water don’t [...]
In an effort to satisfy large groups of customers, Hot Stuff Foods has developed the Big Stuff Crowd Pleaser Pizza, a 52-inch party pizza ideal for “wowing” hearty appetites at football parties, youth sports events, birthdays, family get-togethers and all other gathering of pizza lovers. The new Big Stuff Pizza delivers about $15 of gross profit [...]
Employee Relations Though its owned and operated entirely by the Huppert family, the Team Oil Travel Center employs 16 people from the local Spring Valley, Wis. community. Tony Huppert, CEO and vice president of the company, calls employees and customer service the backbone if Team Oil’s success. Employees are encouraged to learn many interesting and [...]
Several clients have recently challenged us to try to creatively refinance convenience mortgages tied to properties that were acquired over the last several years. These properties were purchased based upon high cash flow multiples of seven times or more–multiples that have become the norm with many transactions around the country. When considered in light of [...]
You’ve certainly heard the old saying: “Our people are our greatest asset.” We all know what the phrase intends to convey, but, if you think about it, the analogy is clumsy at best. In the real world, assets are things that can be bought, sold or traded, like buildings, equipment, patents, systems and secret ingredients. [...]
The foundations for other industries lay in the product. The film industry pumps out movies. Pharmaceuticals companies manufacture drugs. Publishers print magazines. For convenience stores the world over, the foundation is literally the foundation. “It comes down to location, location, location, just like in real estate,” said Jeff Lenard, vice president of communications for [...]
Finding the right loyalty program “fit” involves a lot more than simply signing up with the first supplier partner you find. Successful c-store retailers need an up-to-date loyalty solution that fits their budgets, their POS systems and their stores. “We’re just gas people—we don’t understand this stuff,” said Gene Tish, vice president and chief operating [...]
“In a business like cigars, where unit volume is growing 10% plus year-over-year, emerging strategic thinking in convenience retail suggests that retailers can grow even faster by employing a “price-for-volume” strategy for key products.” David Bishop, partner, Willard Bishop This summer, we examined how convenience retailers could manage the cigar category differently to realize above-market [...]
Anyone who’s ever tried to satisfy an urge to snack with a bag of salty chips knows that you have to have a drink to do it right. That, of course, is the basis of cross-marketing: linking the desire for one product to a perceived need for another—and offering customers cost-saving deals that combine their [...]
Chains like McDonald’s, Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts have been busy overhauling their foodservice programs to capitalize on the increased demand for breakfast items, described by foodservice experts as the fastest-growing daypart segment. Convenience chains like 7-Eleven, however, are well ahead of the curve already owning a popular line of breakfast items that continues to expand. [...]
No one sells food that is both fresh and convenient in the U.S., sniffed a retailing analyst quoted by the London Economist last year. “The typical American convenience store consumer is Homer Simpson.” Oh, really? Tell that to the hundreds of customers who stood in line waiting for giant British food retailer Tesco’s first Fresh [...]