By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Come on, admit it. You wish you were a better networker. Fear not, it is time to unleash your inner networker. Networking is one part art and one part discipline and while there is more than one way to network, if your networking efforts…
Menu Simplification: Maintaining Your Focus
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Foodservice operators have long wrestled with the challenge of balancing the demand for increased menu options by customers with that of menu simplification. While a focus on systems and procedures at quick-service restaurants (QSR’s) still drive most operations, these are often at odds with growing…
Launching Your Gift Card Program
By John Matthews, founder and CEO of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Gift cards continue to grow leaps and bounds allowing retailers that have implemented a gift card program for their stores to reap vast benefits. In fact, total spending on gift cards in 2012 nearly reached $30 billion with around two-thirds of all American consumers having…
Marketing To Kids
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. “Oh, what a tangled web do parents weave, when they think that their children are naive.” – Ogden Nash Children have been marketed to for years. Retail industry titans have recognized that targeting children and winning their loyalty can carry on throughout their entire…
The Art of Execution
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Operational excellence is a retail buzzword that often gets glossed over. Retailers talk the talk, but often miss on walking the walk. Operational excellence has a singular focus: the customer. The customer is treated as a privilege, not a right, and their patronage needs…
Pilot Flying J To Settle Lawsuit for $72 Million
Pending a fairness hearing, the settlement would draw to a close a lawsuit brought by 10 trucking companies alleging fuel rebate fraud. Pilot Flying J is expected to settle the ongoing federal class action lawsuit over alleged fuel rebate fraud for $72 million, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported. On Nov. 25, 2013 a fairness healing…
Hershey Makes $100,000 Donation to Wounded Warrior Project
Participates in ‘Believe in Heroes’ Campaign. The Hershey Co. has announced a $100,000 donation to Wounded Warrior Project and its participation in the Believe in Heroes campaign. The donation will help support Wounded Warrior Project’s numerous programs, which are addressing the urgent needs of this generation’s injured service members. To promote the Believe in Heroes…
CITGO Marketers Support 8MBA
CITGO Petroleum, Barrick Enterprises and Knight Enterprises help fund revitalization efforts for Eight Mile Corridor. CITGO Petroleum Corp., along with local CITGO Marketers Barrick Enterprises and Knight Enterprises, came together to support the Eight Mile Boulevard Association’s (8MBA) ninth annual golf outing, held Sept. 20 at the Whispering Willows Golf Course in Livonia, Mich. The…
Flash Foods Launches Mobile App With Payment Option
Now customers can pay at the pump using their smartphone. by Erin Rigik, associate editor. Flash Foods, with 172 locations in Georgia and Florida, has launched its first-ever mobile app that includes a mobile payment option for customers. The app offers a number of features, including a store locator complete with fuel prices for each…
Driving Confectionery Sales With Seasonal Treats
Bite-sized products and king-sized bars are boosting ticket averages, while an influx of seasonal items offers convenience stores new profit potential. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor.While single-serve chocolate and other candy remains solid at convenience stores, the industry is missing a big opportunity to capitalize on holiday and seasonal sales.The industry has long ceded this…