At Your Convenience

Join Dover Fueling Solutions Amy Cearley and Kendra Keller as they discuss how women are innovating in the industry, what trends are hot right now and where the c-store and fuel industries are heading.  

In this “At Your Convenience”  podcast , in partnership with C-StoreTEC, guest host Art Sebastian dives into the dynamic world of digital commerce and online ordering in the convenience-store industry. Sebastian,  NexChapter CEO , is joined by Kristin Sword from  Jacksons Food Store s, Meridian, Idaho, and Adit Gupta from  Lula Convenience , Philadelphia, to discuss the accelerated shift to digita...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Editor Chuck Ulie talks to Ryan Blevins, the director of food and beverage innovation at Powell, Tennessee-based  Weigel's convenience stores . Blevins also touches on getting customers to turn a gas trip into a  foodservice-shopping trip , Weigel’s eight new sauces and more. Weigel’s  is a family-owned and -operated c-store chain that has been s...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” David Poulnot, vice president of fuel and c-store at Upside, shares findings from the technology company's C-Store Report released this month. He talks about how despite sales growth headlines, convenience-store revenue has decreased when inflation is considered, dropping 19% between January 2021 and January 2024. Shoppers are making fewer c-store trip...

In this episode of  “At Your Convenience,”   CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Patricia Coe, senior director of client leadership, for Advantage Solutions Convenience Division, and Doug Middlebrooks, senior vice president of channel sales, for Advantage Solutions. The three talked about how convenience-store sales reached a new high in 2023, the time it takes for  c-store customers  to de...

In this episode  of “At Your Convenience,” Scott Negley, senior director of product management at Dover Fueling Solutions, and Doug Haugh, chief commercial officer at Vertex Energy, talk about a broad-view perspective on the realities of converting the nation to use electric vehicles (EVs). The pair, who spoke in March at  the Dover Fueling Solutions conference  in Austin, advocate for “decarboniz...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  NexChapter CEO Art Sebastian  talks with Mike Caldwell, manager of loyalty at Yesway, and Jake Kiser,  general manager of Stuzo PAR .

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Editor Chuck Ulie talks to  Farley Kaiser , senior director of culinary of innovation at McLane Fresh. Kaiser (pictured) discusses the power of limited-time offers, breakfast still holding the title of king, and how lunch remains a strong focus of development—and opportunity. McLane  is one of the largest distributors in America and a partner to reta...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to SunStop convenience store’s Michelle Weckstein, director of food and beverage brands, and Constance Rolfson, food and beverage brand manager. Rolfson shared how Weckstein  has helped her launch her career , and the two give advice on how others can be mentors. Weckstein (pictured second from the left with her pow...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” Nick Triantafellou, director of marketing at Weigel’s, peels back the curtain on how the convenience-store chain created its name, image and likeness  (NIL) partnerships  with University of Tennessee athletes. Weigel’s Stores Inc. is  No. 98  on  CSP’s Top 202  list of convenience-store chains by store count. The Knoxville, Tennessee-based  c-store chain p...

In this episode of At Your Convenience, Rachel Gignac, associate editor at CSP Daily News, talks with Rovertown's Tyler Cameron, head of strategy and analytics, and Bill Bustin, head of customer success, about their recent research on what kinds of coupons work best for convenience-store retailers.

When Majors Management LLC completed its transaction with Compañía de Petróleos de Chile S.A. (COPEC) for the acquisition of 192 MAPCO-branded convenience stores in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Arkansas and Kentucky, at the end of last year, it represented yet another transition from one owner to another. For some, it might have felt like an insurmountable amount of change. But for Da...

There is no ‘I’ in Sheetz… At least  that’s how Matt High , senior sales manager for Sheetz MTO, puts it. In this episode of  At Your Convenience,  High, and Abbey Lewis, vice president of content strategy at Informa Connect, discuss the player-coach relationship he has with his team, his involvement in  CSP’s  Convenience Store Women’s conference and menu ideation at Sheetz. We even get him to gi...

This is the final podcast in a three-part series on the Path to Foodservice Profitability. In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Liza Salaria, senior principal consultant at Impact 21, about menu optimization. Salaria looks at examples from quick-service restaurants (QSRs) Chick-fil-A and Chipotle, as well as some c-stores, to see how retailers can b...

In part two of a three-part series on the Path to Foodservice Profitability,  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond interviews Impact 21 Senior Principal Consultant Liza Salaria and Beth Hoffer, vice president of operations and  foodservice  from Weigel’s convenience stores. Weigel’s Stores Inc., Powell, Tennessee, is  No. 98  on   CSP’s  Top 202  ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by store coun...

This is the first of a three-part series on the Path to Foodservice Profitability. In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Liza Salaria, senior principal consultant at Impact 21, a consulting firm that enables specialty retail, convenience and energy clients to delivery seamless customer experiences. Salaria shares how developing  the right foodservice...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Kristen Hjelm, regional account manager for Bunn and a C-Store Women’s (CSW) event  power team member. Hjelm shares what her team’s mission statement is and tips they’ve come up with to successfully network.   “At Your Convenience” brings industry experts and analysts together with  CSP  editors to discuss the la...

In this episode  of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Jessica Mente, director of training at convenience-store chain Royal Farms. Royal Farms is  No. 30  on  CSP’s 2023 Top 202  ranking of top U.S. convenience-store chains by store count. Mente recapped her experience at  CSP’s  inaugural C-Store Women’s Event, which took place  in November in Napa, California , an...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Mandee Harvey-Smith, director of analytics, insights and media strategy at RaceTrac, about how an open mind  led her to her job. RaceTrac, Atlanta, is  No. 15  on  CSP’s  2023 Top 202  ranking of convenience store chains by store count. She also spoked to the importance of being open to feedback and what she thin...

Earlier this fall,  CSP  brought  five convenience-store executives  to the general session stage during our annual  Outlook Leadership Conference  in a session we titled C-Suite in the Hot Seat. During the session,  CSP’s  Mitch Morrison , vice president of retailer relations, and Editor-in-Chief  Steve Holtz  peppered each executive with a series of questions about themselves and what’s new in t...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” RaceTrac President Natalie Morhous gives a speech at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta as she accepts her 2023 Retail Leader of the Year award . The third-generation leader of the Atlanta-based convenience-store chain gave thanks to her family, coworkers and industry partners.

Two years ago, the pandemic shook up the supply chain like never before. Today, distributor McLane Co. is re-establishing itself with new technology, foodservice and a  revamped trade show . CSP  Editor-in-Chief  Steve Holtz  discusses the distributor’s culture of continuous improvement and the state of distribution with McLane Grocery President Chris Smith.

Are the Mystery Shop evaluation scores getting too close?  CSP  Editor Rachel Gignac talks to Cameron Watt, president and CEO of evaluation firm Intouch Insight, in August at the  Outlook Leadership Conference . This year, for the fourth time, Rutter's was presented Customer Experience Award for its success. Watt told  CSP  about chains' strengths and weaknesses, plus, how the audit might...

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,”  CSP  Senior Editor Hannah Hammond talks  to Glennie Bench, president and COO at Southwest Georgia Oil Co. Inc. The Bainbridge, Georgia-based company has about 80 convenience stores under the SunStop brand. Southwest Georgia Oil Co. In./SunStop is  No. 86  on  CSP’s   2023 Top 202  ranking of top U.S. convenience-store chains by store count. Bench has been...

As the  2023 NACS Show  approaches,  CSP  Editor-in-Chief  Steve Holtz  connects with the outgoing chairman of NACS, Don Rhoads, CEO of Convenience Group LLC, about the state of the industry and his year at the helm of the convenience-store association. “I think that once we get to October I’ll look back and [conclude this year] has been one of the top activities that I’ve been involved in,” he sa...