The early forecasts of the convenience retailing industry’s 2023 performance are positive. Which trends stood out and what do preliminary numbers tell us about where the industry is heading in 2024? Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky About our Guest: Chris Rapanick, Managing Director, NACS Research Chris oversees the day-to-day operations of NACS Research, manages and directs departmental financial and operational performance, and drives strategic development of NACS long-term research capabilities and offerings for the convenience industry.

Electric vehicles may be the future, but that doesn’t mean they don't have challenges today. Hear how Plaid Pantry is redefining EV charging at convenience stores. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Jonathan Polonsky, CEO, Plaid Pantry As the CEO of Plaid Pantry, a chain of convenience stores in the Pacific Northwest, Jonathan leads a team of over 700 employees across 106 locations, serving more than 50,000 customers daily.

Over the past year, we visited more than 100 convenience stores. We’ll share what we saw at c-stores and what it might mean to your business in 2024. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky

Our top-downloaded episode of 2023: Store managers have a significant impact on hiring and retaining great people. Hear how one retailer is coaching her team so they can be at their best. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky About our Guest: Annie Gauthier, CFO & Co-CEO, St. Romain Oil Company (dba Y-Not Stop) Annie is CFO/Co-CEO of St. Romain Oil Company (dba Y-Not Stop), based in Mansura, Louisiana. A third-generation co-owner, she works with her two brothers and 300-plus team members to refuel and refresh the Louisiana communities where they operate.

What's fact or fiction related to how quickly electric vehicles will grow sales? How today's market evolves is dependent upon economics and politics, and both are highly unpredictable. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: John Eichberger, Executive Director, Transportation Energy Institute John has more than 20 years of experience in the fuels industry, including more than a decade leading the Transportation Energy Institute (formerly known as the Fuels Institute). Prior to that, he served for 15 years as vice president of government relations at NACS, with a focus on fuels- and energy-related issues.

Wages and benefits are the largest expense to your business, but can also have the greatest ROI. Competitive hiring practices can help you get and keep great people who advance your business from the front line. Find out if your offer is competitive and learn about the data and resources NACS has to help. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky About our Guest: Jayme Gough, Market Research Manager, NACS Jayme has been at NACS since 2017 and loves “geeking out” on industry data collected and analyzed by NACS. In her current role, she oversees the NACS suite of HR-focused research projects, most notably the annual NACS Compensation Survey.

Convenience stores are in the relationships business. Over the past two decades, Michael Davis has played a central role in connecting retailers. Listen as he shares ideas on how to connect with industry peers. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky About our Guest: Michael Davis, NACS Vice President of Member Services Michael has spent the past 18 years at NACS and even longer in the industry, always taking that extra step to connect retailers to solutions and each other. His background includes owning and operating a small c-store and coffee bar, website design, online publishing and trendspotting.

NACS Show panelists share ideas on how organizations can develop processes to come up with great ideas—and execute them—over and over. Hosted by: Gray Taylor, Executive Director, Conexxus About our Guests: Emily Sheetz, VP, Innovation and IT, Sheetz Inc. Emily is responsible for the development of and execution of company strategy as well as innovation, which includes the newly formed Sheetz Incubator. She is a third-generation family member and one of eleven active in the business. Emily previously served as director of talent development, responsible for all training and leadership development across the company. Vish Ganapathy, Director, Customer Engineering Retail, Google Vish has over 27 years in the information technology business, focusing on retail, wholesale/distribution, CPG and supply-chain segments.

Convenience retailers share how the The Good Jobs Strategy is helping their companies increase employee productivity, contribution and motivation. Hosted by: Henry Armour, President & CEO, NACS About our Guests: Zeynep Ton, Professor, MIT Sloan School of Management, President, The Good Jobs Institute Zeynep's research focuses on how organizations can design and manage their operations in a way that satisfies employees, customers and investors simultaneously. In 2014, she published her findings in a book, "The Good Jobs Strategy: How the Smartest Companies Invest in Employees to Lower Costs and Boost Profits." Zeynep cofounded the nonprofit Good Jobs Institute to help companies transform through assessments, workshop, and longer-term partnerships. In 2023, Zeynep published “The Case for Good Jobs: How Great Companies Bring Dignity, Pay & Meaning to Everyone's Work.” NACS partners with the Good Jobs Institute to bring the Good Jobs Strategy to the convenience store industry. Varish Goyal, CEO, Loop Neighborhood Markets Varish has worked in the convenience and fuels retailing industry since 2002. He has served as CEO of Loop Neighborhood Markets since 2018 and is also president of Vintners Distributors Inc. The company operates more than 100 stores in California under the Loop Neighborhood Markets brand. Joe Hamza, Chief Operating Officer, Nouria Energy Corp. Joe has been with the Worcester-Massachusetts-based Nouria Energy Corp. since 2015. The company operates 175 locations throughout New England, 60 Golden Nozzle car washes and a wholesale business servicing over 300 locations in New England and New York. Prior to joining Nouria, Joe was vice president of sales and marketing at Tedeschi Food Shops Inc.

Being a local brand in rural America is a huge differentiator for consumers. By showing your commitment to the local community, you ultimately build trust—and that leads to sales. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Akhtar Hussain, Director of Refined Fuels Marketing at CHS Inc. Akhtar is responsible for brand marketing, retail development and imaging, and equipment for the Cenex brand, which has more than 1,400 convenience store locations across 19 states. In his nearly 20 years at CHS, Hussain has held a number of roles including manager of petroleum equipment and manager of refined fuels marketing.