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3 weeks ago | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
If I had asked Steve Lerch, he probably would have told me to write this article using AI. Or at least let it produce the initial draft for me to edit.
So I did. But not the article you’re about to read—this one is written by a human. If you’re curious what the AI version would have looked like, check out that version in the sidebar at the end of this article.
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3 weeks ago | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
According to Nathan Arnold, director of marketing at Englefield Oil Company, which operates Duchess convenience stores in Ohio, “The belief over the years has been ‘If you put [a product] out, it will sell.’ There is still that mentality, but we want to make sure we are doing it in a thoughtful, curated way.
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1 month ago | 
convenience.org | Lauren Shanesy
By Lauren Shanesy
What’s the difference between these two iced coffee offers: Buy one, get one 50% off and 2 for $10?
Psychology, said Alexis Gillette, vice president of marketing at Dunn Brothers Coffee, while presenting at the 2025 National Restaurant Association Show, held last week in Chicago.
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1 month ago | 
convenience.org | Lauren Shanesy
By Lauren Shanesy
As the price of food increases along with inflation, consumers are reevaluating where and what they’re spending their money on.
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1 month ago | 
convenience.org | Lauren Shanesy
By Lauren Shanesy
Foodservice can bring in a lot of revenue—but that doesn’t automatically mean your program is profitable. High costs of goods, expensive ingredients, inconsistent portion sizes and a menu with slow-moving dishes can eat away at profitability quickly.
“If you save even a penny per dish, what does that add up to at the end of the year?” said Adrianne Calvo, executive chef, restaurant owner and TV personality.
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Mar 25, 2025 | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
The customer is the core of the convenience business. With so much data available about who the shopper is, retailers that capture the data, analyze it to create useful information and operationalize the insights gained from the information can drive sales, loyalty and profit—and, critically, differentiate themselves from competition by creating a better customer experience.
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Mar 25, 2025 | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
Last summer, cybersecurity company CrowdStrike’s infamous IT outage disrupted businesses across the globe. Circle K lost payment capabilities in its stores for 12 hours, said Ed Dzadovsky, global CTO & EVP, Alimentation Couche-Tard, while speaking at the 2025 Conexxus Annual Conference in January. “We lost millions and millions of dollars that day. And that’s just what we know we lost in that time.
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Mar 25, 2025 | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
AI is being called many things—a revolution, a fleeting moment or a gamechanger, depending on who you ask.
“I think a lot of people are in denial that AI is not here to stay and that it’s a fad. But people said the same thing about the internet, too,” said Babir Sultan, owner of Fav Trip, a chain of five stores in Missouri.
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Feb 4, 2025 | 
nacsmagazine.com | Lauren Shanesy
There’s an oft spoken mantra at NACS when it comes to advocacy: “If you’re not at the dinner table, then you’re on the menu.”
“If you’re not engaged, understand that there are other groups that are advocating for something that will negatively impact your business,” said Tom Brennan, chief merchandising officer at Casey’s General Stores.
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Jan 31, 2025 | 
convenience.org | Lauren Shanesy
By Lauren Shanesy
Launching new tech at your store can be time consuming and costly if done ineffectively.
At the 2025 Conexxus Annual Conference this week in Tucson, Arizona, retailers took the stage during the session “Think Tank Panel: Realities from Top C-Store Leaders” to discuss how they’re evaluating and implementing new technologies.
