Swipe Fee Reform Advances

Swipe Fee Reform Advances

The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate negotiators have sided with retailers, reaching an agreement to include swipe fee reform provisions in the final financial services reform bill that is now on its way to Congress for a final vote. The provisions, known as the Durbin Amendment after the author, Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), is [...]

Mid-Atlantic Acquires Uppy’s

Mid-Atlantic Acquires Uppy’s

Mid-Atlantic Convenience Stores, backed by equity firm Catterton Partners, has acquired a majority interest in Uppy’s Convenience Stores Inc. and 170 convenience stores/fuel stations from Exxon Mobil Corp. The transaction creates a leading convenience store operator in the Mid-Atlantic region with more than 200 convenience store operations in Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.  Uppy’s was founded [...]

Kroger Makes Strides In Sustainability

Kroger Makes Strides In Sustainability

The company’s 2010 Sustainability Report, recently published online, shows the company has reduced overall energy consumption by more than 27%, and includes updates in four core areas:            —Reducing its carbon footprint, especially by decreasing energy usage;            —Eliminating and recycling waste including reducing plastic bag use;             —Lowering the impact of [...]

Couche-Tard Versus Iowa

Couche-Tard Versus Iowa

Alimentation Couche-Tard plans to challenges the constitutionality of several Iowa anti-takeover laws as part of the company’s hostile bid to purchase Casey’s General Stores, the Des Moines Register reported. Couche-Tard, which operates 5,883 convenience stores in the U.S. and Canada, filed court papers late last week alleging that three Iowa statutes contradict U.S. law, creating [...]

Bankrupt Sunshine Wants Stores Back

Bankrupt Sunshine Wants Stores Back

Bankrupt Sunshine Energy, owner of APPCO, is fighting in the courts to regain its 12 closed convenience stores, which were repossessed by Management Properties Inc., the Johnson City Press reported. Meanwhile, Management Properties Inc. (MPI)  wants Sunshine’s recently filed bankruptcy thrown out of court, so it can repossess another 16 stores. According to Sunshine Energy, [...]

Terrible’s Hosts UFC Fighter

Terrible’s Hosts UFC Fighter

Terrible Herbst-Gas-Convenience Store, at 6716 S. Las Vegas Blvd in Las Vegas, is set to host Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter Dan Hardy, who will be signing autographs for fans on Saturday, July 3 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Hardy plans to be in Las Vegas to support fellow XYIENCE team fighter Wanderlei Silva [...]

Hess Express ATMs Welcome PNC Customers

Hess Express ATMs Welcome PNC Customers

Hess, PNC Bank and Cardtronics Inc. agreed this month to expand ATM access for PNC customers at 230 Cardtronics-owned ATMs located in Hess Express stores across Florida. Under terms of the ATM branding deal, Cardtronics will place the PNC brand on the ATMs, operate the machines on behalf of PNC and make them available on [...]

NOCO Express Adds Just Pizza

NOCO Express Adds Just Pizza

Tonawanda, N.Y.-based NOCO Express has added a Just Pizza location within its Depew store located at French and Borden Roads. The approximately 600-square foot Just Pizza location features a full menu of more than 75 varieties of pizza, chicken wings, submarine sandwiches, salads and appetizers for dine-in and carry-out. “We are always looking for ways [...]

Retail Gasoline Prices to Renew Move to Upside

Retail Gasoline Prices to Renew Move to Upside

By Brian L. Milne, Refined Fuels Editor, Telvent DTN Wholesale gasoline prices moved higher in metropolitan markets across the U.S., which will reverse the trend in retail prices since the middle of May from down to up. Broad-based economic data underpinned the higher wholesale prices, which continue to climb during the first day of summer. [...]

Campbell’s Celebrates Grand Opening

Campbell’s Celebrates Grand Opening

Campbell Soup Company kicked off the grand opening celebration of its Campbell Employee Center, an 80,000-square foot addition to the company’s World Headquarters, earlier this month. Against the backdrop of a glass entrance complete with a signature red wall and iconic “Campbell’s” logo, Campbell Soup Company executives, along with hundreds of community members and state [...]

BP Erects Gulf Coast Restoration Organization

BP Erects Gulf Coast Restoration Organization

BP’s has instituted a new Gulf Coast Restoration Organization, set to manage the company’s long-term response to the Deepwater Horizon incident and the MC252 oil and gas spill. Effective immediately, Bob Dudley has been appointed president and CEO of BP’s new Gulf Coast Restoration Organization, and will report to Tony Hayward, BP’s Group Chief Executive. The [...]

Agreement Reached On Interchange

Agreement Reached On Interchange

Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) and key conferees have reached an agreement on the Wall Street reform bill, regarding his amendment regulating interchange fees, NACS reported. The agreement makes minor, clarifying changes to the language, which passed the Senate 64 to 33 on May 13, and responds to concerns raised by state governments [...]

SFI Tobacco Festival Dates Announced

SFI Tobacco Festival Dates Announced

Smoker Friendly International (SFI) is set to host its annual Tobacco Festival and Conference from Aug. 30- Sept. 1 at the Millennium Harvest House in Boulder, Colo. SFI also has announced the members of its 2010 legislative panel. This year’s distinguished group will include:  David Riser, vice president of External Relations Trade Marketing, RJ Reynolds [...]

NY Cigarette Taxes To Hit $4.35 A Pack

NY Cigarette Taxes To Hit $4.35 A Pack

On Monday night, June 21, 2010, the New York Legislature narrowly agreed to increase the state’s tax on cigarettes. The tax is now set to grow by an additional $1.60-to a national-high $4.35 a pack, the New York Daily News reported.   When adding in city and federal taxes, the tax charged on one pack [...]

Aloha Petroleum Revamps Security

Aloha Petroleum Revamps Security

Aloha Petroleum, an independently-owned retail gasoline marketer and convenient store operator in Hawaii, has added SonicWALL’s advanced line of network security and data protection solutions. “We needed a state-of-the-art security infrastructure that can be centrally managed to eliminate intruders from accessing our networks or crossing the gateways,” said Dwight Mascowe, IT support specialist at Aloha [...]