Team Oil secures its future as an employee-focused organization by promoting from within. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Tony and Eric Huppert, owners of Team Oil Inc. of Spring Valley, Wis., have promoted Carrie Vanasse to head of operations, following Tony’s announcement this year of his upcoming retirement. The succession plan was implemented to secure [...]
New Shopper Experience Innovation Center allows retailers to test concepts in mock stores with real customers. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. The Coca-Cola Co. has launched a Shopper Experience Innovation Center (SEIC) in Atlanta. The 15,000-square-foot facility opened last May and contains two retail environments that can be converted from a supermarket to a drug [...]
Isis, with the support of Gilbarco Veeder-Root and Wayne, launches in Texas and Salt Lake City as it looks to gain traction in the growing mobile payments industry. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Isis, a mobile commerce joint venture by AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless, introduced its long-anticipated Isis Mobile Wallet last month, [...]
Georgia chain debuts on Inc. magazine’s celebrated list of fastest growing companies. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. The Parker Cos. Inc., with 27 convenience stores throughout southeast Georgia and coastal South Carolina, has scored the No. 3006 spot on the annual Inc. 500/5000 Fastest Growing Companies list. It’s the first time the c-store chain has [...]
Through a partnership with Crime Stoppers, criminals will have their photos posted to Facebook and Twitter where viewers can help identify them. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Mac’s Convenience Stores, a division of Alimentation Couche-Tard, is leveraging the strengths of social media in conjunction with local Crime Stopper units to fight crime at its Canadian [...]
Certified foodservice managers have shown that they are competent and disciplined, and they tend to display outstanding human resources management skills. By Dr. Nancy Caldarola, Education Director, NACS CAFÉ Foodservice has taken a prominent place in convenience stores. This segment has grown from a humble cup of coffee to a wide array of fresh sandwiches, [...]
Massachusetts retailer is the 19th operator in 53 years to receive the association’s Distinguished Marketer Award. By John Lofstock, Editor. Few people have seen the convenience store and petroleum industry evolve as has Richard Salinsky, president of Best Petroleum in Lynn, Mass. With more than 50 years of experience and dedication to the industry, Salinsky [...]
Proposed changes by the Department of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board could drastically change how employers interact with their workforce. By Jeffrey Usher, Contributing Editor. In recent months, the words “unions” and “collective bargaining” have been spoken in the media, at social gatherings and in business meetings more than they have been in [...]
Five employees and seven dependents get some relief on college tuition costs. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores’ Learning With Love’s Scholarship Fund, now in its third year, has awarded $40,000 in scholarships to a number of Love’s employees and their dependents to assist with college costs for the 2011-2012 [...]
The National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees boosts charitable funding. By John Lofstock, Editor. As part of its ongoing commitment to charitable causes, the National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees (NCASEF) helped raise nearly $750,000 this year for two of its charitable partners, Hire Heroes USA and the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). Hire [...]
Stores will be evaluated three times a year to ensure customer needs are met and employees are providing a positive retail experience. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Valero has partnered with Maritz Research to launch a new mystery shopping program, called Commitment to Excellence. As part of the new program, each of the company’s Valero, [...]
ConocoPhillips is officially rolling out the KickBack Points Coalition Loyalty Program to branded marketers through a series of Road Show meetings starting today in Seattle. The meeting in Seattle will be the first of 28 Road Show meetings starting on the West Coast, before moving into the other ConocoPhillips markets. This program is a turnkey [...]
Record crowds expected at Health and Wellness Sunday to revel in music, food and fun. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. Quick Chek Food Stores will kick off the 29th annual Quick Chek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning, the largest summertime hot air balloon and music festival in North America, on July 29 at Solberg Airport [...]
With gas prices rising, loyalty programs are rewarding customers with steep discounts. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor. With fuel prices approaching record highs in May, customers were thinking carefully about where they stop for gas and are paying more attention to rewards programs that offer cents-off fuel gallons purchased. Convenience store chains are responding with [...]
Five newly opened stores are expected to consume 20% less energy thanks to efficient heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) solutions. By Erin Rigik, associate editor. Kum & Go’s commitment to environmental stewardship has earned it the “Energy Efficiency Leader Award” from Hussmann and Trane, both brands of Ingersoll Rand, for adopting sustainable energy [...]