At Your Convenience

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP’s Group Managing Editor Hannah Hammond talks to Melissa Vonder Haar (pictured right), managing director of TradeWorks for iSee Store Innovations and chair of CSP’s C-Store Cannabis Board.

At the NACS Show in Las Vegas, Vonder Haar highlighted a landmark moment for hemp-THC companies, which secured dedicated booths for the first time at the expo, despite looming December deadline regulations that could force products off shelves. 

She argued that banning hemp THC, rather than regulating it, would fuel a black market like the illicit vape crisis, urging retailers to lobby Congress for regulation instead of prohibition. 

Flavor bans, state age limits and a surging illicit vape market are reshaping compliance for convenience retailers nationwide.

In this episode of CSP's "At Your Convenience" podcast, Mark Braden, vice president of strategic engagement at Reynolds American Inc.; Peter Brennan, executive director at the New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association; Doug Anderson, president at The We Card Program Inc.; and Stephanie Sikorski, vice president of strategic initiatives at NACS and CEO of TruAge, discussed how retailers can navigate shifting regulations while preventing youth access to age-restricted products. The conversation covered FDA guidance, state-level flavor restrictions and the real-world friction retailers face when verifying customer age. The panel emphasized ongoing employee training, in-store compliance checks and digital age-verification tools like TruAge as essential strategies for retailers aiming to sell responsibly in an increasingly complex regulatory landscape.

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Diane Adam (left) talks with Guy Bentley, director of consumer freedom at the Reason Foundation, about the tobacco category and the threats and tailwinds facing products on the backbar.

The two spoke Sept. 16 at CSP’s Tobacco Plus Forum, held in Oak Brook, Illinois.

On the podcast, Bentley also talked about the initiative for a new federally sanctioned nicotine era and the illicit market challenging convenience stores.

Lonnie McQuirter, the 2026-27 NACS chairman, stopped by CSP’s booth at the NACS Show on Oct. 8 in Las Vegas to record this episode of “At Your Convenience” with CSP’s Group Managing Editor Hannah Hammond. 

The two talked about how McQuirter has built a true community hub at his store, 36 Lyn Refuel Station, located in Minneapolis. McQuirter also shares his plans for his year as chairman of the National Association of Convenience Stores, how it feels to diversify the organization’s leadership, the power of independent store operators and more. 

Negotiation is a skill we use every day, often without realizing it, according to Diana Buttu, international lawyer, negotiation expert and instructor at Harvard's Division of Continuing Education. 

In this special edition of “At Your Convenience,” Buttu talks to CSP Conference Content Manager Rachel Gignac about why negotiation matters for leaders, where it shows up in everyday workplace situations and how preparation, listening and understanding emotions can lead to better outcomes. She also discusses the unique challenges women can face when advocating for themselves and offers insights listeners can put into practice at work and beyond.

Buttu will be speaking at C-Store Women (CSW), taking place Nov. 2-4 in Paradise Valley, Arizona, in an interactive session that reveals how dynamics like anchoring, positioning and underlying interests shape decision-making and outcomes.

“At Your Convenience” brings industry experts and analysts together with CSP editors to discuss the latest in c-store news and trends. From mergers and acquisitions to foodservice and technology, the podcast delivers the story straight to listeners in short-format episodes, perfect for the morning commute or a quick break at the office.

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Chuck Ulie (left) talks with John Wandell, director of asset protection at Knoxville, Tennessee-based Pilot Co., about the state of losses at convenience stores today.

The two spoke Aug. 5 at CSP and Informa Connect’s Outlook Leadership event, held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

Wandell shared the most important steps c-store retailers can take to reduce crime. He also discussed things that c-stores might unknowingly do that invite crime—and how they can correct these issues.

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Diane Adam (pictured left) talks with Aisha Jefferson, corporate communications manager of QuikTrip, about the retailer’s strategic growth and what is driving it.

The two spoke on Aug. 5 at CSP and Informa Connect’s Outlook Leadership event, held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

• QuikTrip is No. 7 on CSP’s 2026 Top 202 ranking of convenience-store chains by U.S. store count. 

Jefferson spoke about the company’s recent growth in the Midwest, including the Chicago metropolitan area. Jefferson also discussed the Tulsa-based convenience-store chain’s Gen 4 format that features an expanded kitchen.

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Group Managing Editor Hannah Hammond (pictured left) talks with Stace Anne Benu, chief talent officer at LV Petroleum. 

The two spoke in early August at CSP and Informa Connect’s Outlook Leadership event, held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. 

LV Petroleum is a Las Vegas-based owner and operator of TravelCenters of America franchises. Benu shared how she started with the company, successful recruitment strategies and advice she’d share with her younger self as she started her career. 

In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Chuck Ulie (left) talks with Brian Sardelich (right), president of ExtraMile Convenience Stores, about the convenience-store being a finalist in CSP and Intouch Insight's Mystery Shop audit. 

The two spoke Aug. 4 at CSP and Informa Connect’s Outlook Leadership event, held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

Pleasanton, California-based ExtraMile had a near-perfect score, 99%, in the employees section of the revealed audit of the Mystery Shop contest—and the two discuss why people should want to work at ExtraMile and what the company’s strategy is for retaining such an excellent score.

“Customer experience is paramount to everything we do,” Sardelich said on the podcast. “We got to deliver great customer experience, and that really starts with, number one, how the store is kept. But, secondly, the cashier behind the counter—how are they interacting with the consumer, ensuring that they’re meeting those standards that we’ve set for themselves, and they hold themselves accountable?”

On the podcast, the two also discuss hiring people with the right attitude, the company’s great scores in sandwich cooler, fountain drinks, restrooms, reasonable noise level—and more. 

Diane Adam (left) talks with Joe Hamza, chief operating officer of Nouria Energy Corp., Worcester, Massachusetts, about the convenience-store being a finalist in the 2026 CSP Intouch Insight Mystery Shop audit.

Nouria, the winner in 2024 and 2025, is a 321-store chain in its fifth year in the Mystery Shop. 

They spoke Aug. 5 at CSP and Informa Connect’s Outlook Leadership event, held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.