At Your Convenience

It’s no secret driving customers from the gasoline pump into the store is one of the most studied challenges in operating a convenience store with fuel island. For 18 years, Gas Station TV (GSTV) has put brand stories on the pump to aid retailers in driving customers into the store and consumer brands in sharing a message where their products are readily available.

In this episode of At Your Convenience, CSP Editor-in-Chief Steve Holtz talks to GSTV CEO Sean McCaffrey about getting customers in the door and recent product promotions.

“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.

It was 45 years ago that Tom Hart was robbed at gunpoint while he manned the checkout at a convenience store. The experience, while frightening, set Hart on a career in convenience stores that, today, has him leading online training for convenience retailers and other businesses through a variety of skills, including dealing with armed robbery and store security, with Ready Training Online (RTO).

In this episode of "At Your Convenience," CSP Editor Greg Lindenberg talks with Hart about the encounter and how he hopes others can learn from it and his other experiences in the c-store industry.

“Please don’t call me a bean counter.”

With that statement, Don Bassell is ready to exit the convenience-store industry with plans to retire at the end of this year. After 42 years mostly on the financial side of the business and with companies as varied as Tenneco Oil, Amoco, Mid-Atlantic Convenience Stores and GPM Investments, Bassell has seen the industry evolve from a gasoline marketer to the food-focused retailer of today.

In this episode of At Your Convenience, CSP Editor-in-Chief Steve Holtz reviews career highlights and industry insights with Bassell.

Deb Moore calls them “sticky tools,” the hiring and retention policies and programs that allow Nouria Energy to “really hook [applicants] in and talk to them about our opportunities here, [to] think of our company as somewhere where they can grow.”

In this episode of At Your Convenience, CSP Editor in Chief Steve Holtz talks through how Moore, part of CSP’s 2023 Power 20, rebuilt the human-resource department with the Worcester, Massachusetts-based retailer and addressed store staffing.

LAS VEGAS — In October, CSP honored Ken Parent as its 2022 Retail Leader of the Year (RLOY). Here, Parent, senior advisor and former president of Pilot Co., accepts his award and thanks the people who made it possible.

Click here to read more about the award and Parent’s accomplishments.

“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.

Click here to hear more “At Your Convenience” podcasts.

CHICAGO — In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor-in-Chief Steve Holtz talks through the results of the 2022 Outlook Survey and the future of convenience stores with Editor Chuck Ulie.

How are business conditions? What do retailers expect in 2023? Is the labor market improving? Retailers reveal talk through the best and the worst of the market.

“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.

CHICAGO — In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Jackson Lewis covers the state of c-store distribution with Sharan Kalva, president of Huntsville, Ala.-based C-Store Master.

What are the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic? What are today’s biggest challenges for distributors and what new disruption will tomorrow bring? CSP asks Kalva this and more.

“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.

CSP Senior Editor Hannah Hammond caught up with Cameron Watt, president and CEO of evaluation firm Intouch Insight, in August at the Outlook Leadership Conference, where Rutter's was presented Customer Experience Award for its success.

Watt spoke about the York, Pa.-based chain’s strengths, as well as what other convenience stores did well in 2022 and what needs to improve.

“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.

Mike Lawshe, president of Paragon Solutions, Fort Worth, Texas, talks with CSP Editor, Rachel Gignac about how to design a store for an easy customer flow and experience in this episode of "At Your Convenience."

It's about peaking the customers interest in features they didn't even know they wanted, according to Lawshe. He also explains ways that design can benefit customers from the moment they enter the parking lot.

“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 Editors Hannah Hammond and Greg Lindenberg talk to bp leaders about the oil company’s transition into convenience and its Reimagining Energy strategy.

Debi Boffa, vice president of convenience for the Americas at bp and president of Thorntons, and Greg Franks, senior vice president of mobility and convenience for the Americas with bp, spoke about the Houston-based company’s initiatives from the Thornton’s headquarters in Louisville, Ky.