Blogs
Inspiring a Solid Work Ethic
Consider this an open letter to the young men and women that work in our stores. If you want to advance, don’t let your bosses out work you. By Jim Callahan. Did you ever wonder how older co-workers keep going long after many of their younger cohorts seem to have worn down and out? I’m [...]
Inspiring Leadership in Those Around You
Master Chief Petty Officer David A. Lindenberger. He is the toughest man I’ve ever met. As the senior enlisted man aboard the submarine USS Providence during my time in the Navy, he was known simply as Chief of the Boat or the COB. He wasn’t a particularly big man, maybe an iron fist taller than [...]
Local Store Marketing: Overcoming Retail Wallpaper
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Ever drive down the road and out of the corner of your eye you catch a glimpse of a 20-foot pink gorilla in a bathing suit on top of a store? That is a retailer attempting to overcome what I call the “retail wallpaper [...]
The 1980s Las Vegas Turnaround… and Lessons for C-Store Operators
Widen your customer base and change your surroundings. By David Hochman, owner of DJH Marketing Communications Inc. For the first 30 years or so, casinos in Las Vegas thrived, raking in obscene profits simply because options for legal gambling in the U.S. were few, far and in-between. Things started to get a bit more difficult for the casinos [...]
Creating An Advertising Plan
By John Matthews, president of Gray Cat Enterprises. As you have probably gathered from reading my other articles, I am a firm believer in planning for success. Whether it is operational excellence, de-branding a store or outlining your procedures and policies, prudent planning creates stronger execution and efficiency. While planning may come second nature to [...]
Creating A Policy And Procedure Handbook
By John Matthews, president of Gray Cat Enterprises. “Badges? We ain’t got no badges. We don’t need no badges! I don’t have to show you any stinkin’ badges!” – from The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. As a small business owner, you may wonder why one would need to get organized from a policy and [...]
Redrawing the Battle Lines
Separating nicotine from cigarettes and smoking could open new doors for tobacco. By Lou Maiellano. Imagine a natural ingredient so promising and intriguing that it is being clinically evaluated to address a variety of illnesses and conditions, including depression, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, Tourette syndrome, ADHD, anger management and anxiety. Think about it, an ingredient that would [...]
Strengthening the Leadership Chain
When it comes to attracting and maintaining repeat customers, a convenience store is only as strong as its weakest link. By Jim Callahan. In Thomas Reid’s Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man he wrote that, “in every chain of reasoning, the evidence of the last conclusion can be no greater than that of the [...]
Managing Technology Within An Organization
“I am putting myself to the fullest possible use, which is all I think that any conscious entity can ever hope to do.” — From the HAL 9000 computer, 2001: A Space Odyssey When it comes to technology solutions for your business it is easy to get carried away with the latest-and-greatest gadgets and solutions. [...]
Lessons in Retail Leadership
Despite fast-changing customer expectations, shortened product and retail life cycles and rapid technological advancements, many retailers have not taken advantage of opportunities to innovate. By applying new perspectives to established ways of doing business, convenience store retailers can strengthen their competitive and financial positions, improve the customer experience and create a new life cycle of [...]
Thriving on Teamwork
Getting one store back in order in just two-and-a-half days proved to be the ultimate retail challenge. By Jim Callahan. One of my retail clients recently had to take back two failed convenience stores—that were in extremely bad condition—from a franchisee on a Wednesday and wanted them back online by the weekend. I love a [...]
Creating A Company Communications Plan
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. “What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate” – from the movie, Cool Hand Luke Fire. Aim. Ready. If this is your communications plan…..you may want to read on. Amazingly, many companies do not think about communications—both internally and externally—until it is a [...]
Half Century Man
By John Matthews, founder and president of Gray Cat Enterprises Inc. Feb. 11 was a milepost of sorts – I turned 50! As I enter the second half of my life [sic], I look back at the first 50 years with a great sense of pride and exuberance. I have been blessed with the opportunities [...]
Free Money For Energy Efficiency
By Ali Farsai Savvy owners realize that on their utility bill, they are paying for energy efficiency in the form of utility taxes and fees. If you are paying to subsidize a program, you should also take advantage of its benefits before they run out of funding. Funding on all energy efficiency programs are [...]
A Simple Tobacco Fable
Alternative products are helping to shape the future of convenience store tobacco sets. By Lou Maiellano. Imagine, if you will, that European explorers land in Africa, North America or South America in the 14th, 15th or 16th centuries. Upon landing, these explorers find the inhabitants of these exotic new lands drinking a strange, energizing brew [...]
