Convenience Matters

We Card was founded to minimize youth access to tobacco. More than two decades later, it's working, and there are a number of new initiatives to further its success. The hosts share clips from interviews conducted at NACS Day on the Hill to learn the importance of advocacy – and how others can get involved. NACS was a founding member of the pioneering We Card program that was launched in in 1995 to help introduce the concept of responsible retailing on a massive scale. Today, convenience stores verify identifications for age-restricted products 4.5 million times a day – almost triple the 1.8 million IDs verified by TSA on a daily basis. TheWe Card program has provided retailers with over one million in-store educational kits and has trained over 375,000 retail employees nationwide.

Guest: Doug Anderson, president of The We Card Program

Co-hosts: Jeff Lenard, VP of Strategic Industry Initiatives for theNational Association of Convenience Stores; John Eichberger, Executive Director, Fuels Institute

Two years ago, NACS and United Fresh partnered to develop tools to increase the sale of fresh produce in convenience stores – and the partnership has been successful in its objectives. With more than 154,000 locations across the country, convenience stores are increasingly seen as a convenient destination for consumers to buy fruit and vegetables. And part of that reason is because NACS and the United Fresh Produce Association have worked together to significantly increase the sales of fresh produce in convenience stores. The groups have jointly developed toolkits and created task forces to continue to further their work.

Guest: Tom Stenzel, President and CEO of the United Fresh Produce Association

Co-hosts: Jeff Lenard, VP of Strategic Industry Initiatives for theNational Association of Convenience Stores; John Eichberger, Executive Director, Fuels Institute

While it may sound cliché, members of Congress really do want to hear from their constituents. NACS, like many leading associations, makes it easy for its members to come to Washington, learn the process and the issues and then have productive meetings with their elected officials. Whether you are a first-timer at an annual day on Capitol Hill or a regular – or even a supplier member, the process works. We'll get to tips and advice from a variety of attendees – and provide context for how others can get engaged.

Smartphones have gone well beyond transforming how people communicate and share moments from their lives on social media – they are now transforming how people share things, whether renting homes, selling goods or even sharing cars. The allure to shared travel comes down to one central fact: the average vehicle is used about 5%, on average, each day. Will shared travel disrupt the market – and if so, who will lead this change?

Smartphones have revolutionized how we use a variety of products. Can they also affect how we use our vehicles? The hosts will discuss the findings from a new Fuels Institute research paper.

Co-hosts: Jeff Lenard, VP of Strategic Industry Initiatives for the National Association of Convenience Stores; Donovan Woods, Director of Operations, Fuels Institute

Convenience retailers are always looking for new products or concepts to delight their customers. Sometimes they are able to incorporate them into an existing business – and sometimes it leads to an entirely new business.

Richard talks about how he finds new ideas and even new business opportunities, such as his new concept, the Bottle Shop.

Fuel dispensers have become one of many targets for thieves looking to steal credit and debit card information by "skimming," an aggressive tactic used to illegally obtain consumer card data for fraudulent purposes. How real is the threat and what can you do to minimize it?

A discussion about the threat that skimming poses to consumers and retailers and what is being done to mitigate risks.

Host: Jeff Lenard, VP of Strategic Industry Initiatives for the National Association of Convenience Stores

The convenience store industry is full of family businesses,whether multi-generational or a husband and wife team. The Hub Convenience Stores in North Dakota is one such family business and more – it is Jared and DeAnn Scheeler's return to their hometown to build a new business.

Jared and DeAnn talk about some of the unique elements of running a family business – especially when it's a new concept in a new location.

The old mindset was to discourage teens from hanging out outside retail locations. But today a number of them encourage teens to come to their business — at any hour — so that they can be in a safe haven if they find themselves in a situation where they need help. Convenience stores are playing a role in helping young people find a safe place — and it is literally changing lives.

Convenience stores must be incredibly nimble to respond to customer demand, especially related to fresh and prepared food. In some cases, stores are evolving beyond their physical location with food trucks, like the pit beef concept that is drawing raves in the Columbia, MD, area.

From electric charging to ethanol to compressed natural gas and hydrogen, new fueling options continue to gain traction in the marketplace. As these and other new fueling options emerge as viable alternatives to traditional gasoline and diesel fuel, it is critical that policymakers and industry leaders have access to the latest research related to consumer vehicles and the fuels that power them.

Jay talks about his role in leading the Fuels Institute, which incorporates the perspective of interested stakeholders affected by this market, as well as his lengthy career in the convenience and fuels retailing industry, from his early days opening a store to his outreach during the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.