Store tours and discussions during the 2025 NACS Convenience Summit Europe in Copenhagen revealed opportunities for retailers to consider, no matter where they do business. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Mark Wohltmann, Director, NACS Global Mark is responsible for the strategic development of NACS Global, a worldwide network that supports…

Credit card swipe fees are a huge pain point for retailers and the customers they serve. Hear how the Credit Card Competition Act can bring competition to a broken system. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guests: Doug Kantor, NACS General Counsel Doug has served as legal counsel for NACS for more than 20 years, originally as a partner with the law …

Consumer preferences are constantly changing. Hear insights from a snacker panel on what your customers want now and where snacking is heading. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guests: Rachel Krupa, Founder, The Goods Mart and Krupa Consulting In 2018, Rachel founded the highly curated better-for-you, socially conscious convenience store concept, T…

The U.S. Treasury will officially stop making pennies and phase out the one-cent coin from circulation. Here are four things retailers need to know, recapped from a February 2025 podcast. Hosted by: Jeff LenardBy NACS

The NACS Foundation’s annual 24/7 Day (July 24) makes it easy for retailers and suppliers to celebrate the first responders who protect our communities—and it's free. Hear some of the success stories from previous years and how your company can join the celebration. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Kevin O’Connell, Executive Director, NACS F…

Hear how retailers can grow sales through effective marketing, merchandising and planning that makes their stores the ultimate destination for road trippers. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Steve Holtz, President, Holtz Media Consulting Steve is a veteran c-store journalist with 25 years in the industry. He is currently president of Holtz M…

At least two broad trends are affecting food consumption right now: The growing use of GLP-1 drugs that is leading one segment of customers to seek out products with specific attributes, while economic concerns are leading another segment to increasingly seek out value. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Andreas Düss, CEO, 6 Seeds Consulting A…

Although there have been many changes in the electric vehicle market, both in sales and in perceptions, EVs will continue to play a central role in the future of transportation. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Quincy Lee, Founder & CEO, Electric Era Quincy founded Electric Era in 2020. Prior to that, he led the Gateway Ground Station Antenn…

What are the key convenience retail metrics and themes that were delivered at the 2025 NACS State of the Industry Summit? Chris Rapanick breaks it down for us this week on Convenience Matters. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Chris Rapanick, Managing Director, NACS Research Chris oversees the day-to-day operations of NACS Research, manages a…

AI can sound grandiose... it can sound complicated... and it can sound scary. But it's really just another tool to help you communicate. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Steve Lerch, President, Story Arc Consulting Steve was a featured speaker at the 2025 NACS State of the Industry Summit. He is an award-winning international public speaker …

Let's look at the big takeaways and data from the recently concluded NACS State of the Industry Summit. We cover big-picture industry metrics, consumer trends and insights how you can best navigate today's economic uncertainty. Hosted by: Jeff LenardBy NACS

Convenience can mean extended hours of operation, one-stop shopping, speedy service, online ordering and delivery. When we asked consumers how they defined convenience, one word stood out most. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Adam Rosenblatt, Founding Partner, Bold Decision Adam is one of the nation’s leading political consultants sought af…

Which resources are necessary for HR leaders in convenience retail to build great teams? The recent NACS Human Resource Forum focused on this topic along with other industry-specific themes. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Julie Jackowski, HR Forum Moderator and Chief Legal Officer & Secretary, Casey’s (retired) Julie has more than 30-plus …

EVs are one of many solutions to reducing emissions; we look at some other ways to also examine emission reduction. In addition, we share insights on how EV drivers charge at stores -- and what it means to your business. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: John Eichberger, Executive Director, Transportation Energy Institute John has more than 2…

Highlights from the 2025 NACS Convenience Summit Asia were tours of convenience stores in Tokyo. Hear more for learnings and insights about what we saw, and experienced in this incredibly efficient c-store market. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Jeff McQuilkin, Director, Exhibit Sales & Services, NACS Jeff has over 25 years of exposition sa…

The early weeks of the Trump administration have been marked by a flurry of activity. Find out which actions could impact convenience retail and the potential opportunities for the industry on key issues. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Doug Kantor, General Counsel, NACS Doug has served as legal counsel for NACS for more than 20 years, orig…

How do you get people to listen to your message long enough for it to be effective? Storytelling can help cut through the clutter in a crowded marketplace, and tools like AI can make your messages even more impactful. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Steve Lerch, President, Story Arc Consulting Steve is a keynote speaker at the 2025 NACS Sta…

President Trump and Elon Musk have both advocated for the elimination of the penny. We share insights from customers on whether they agree and how it would affect transactions in convenience stores. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard, NACS Media & Strategic CommunicationsBy NACS

The gas price sign used to be the most important means of communications to attract drivers to c-stores. Today, digital communications have unleashed many other more effective opportunities to tell customers about your offer by appealing to their known behaviors. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Fred Dimesa, Head of Product for Marketing Sol…

Send us a text What’s the fastest and easiest way to grow your convenience store sales without breaking budgets? Answer: SMPs---Strategic Marketing Promotions. SMPs create and communicate your convenience value to customers, then differentiate your stores to beat out competitors for sales, time after time. It’s awesome. But here’s a secret…successf…

We look at some of the preliminary numbers related to industry performance—and what it means to you. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard 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 developm…

Beer accounts for about 7% of all dollars spent inside convenience stores. What are some of the trends that could affect sales in 2025? Hosted by: Jeff Lenard and Chrissy Blasinsky About our Guest: Benj Steinman, President, Beer Marketer’s INSIGHTS Benj is the president of Beer Marketer’s INSIGHTS Inc., the leading trade publisher for the United St…

Send us a text When you learn to see... •The convenience industry and its' customers DIFFERENTLY, •Your store model and retail marketing DIFFERENTLY... ...ONLY THEN can you create new sales and growth opportunities. Let's explore: Why doesn't the convenience store industry grow commensurate with the growing importance of convenience in every other …

New policies from the Trump Administration could affect the broader fuels market in 2025 and beyond. Find out what could impact retailers. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Denton Cinquegrana, Chief Oil Analyst, OPIS Denton has been with OPIS since 2001 and serves as the chief oil analyst, responsible for the day-to-day operations of OPIS’ ne…

Here are some of the top retail-focused trends seem at the January 2025 NRF Show. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Tim Tang, Director, Business Technologies, Hughes With 30 years of professional experience in developing enterprise solutions, Tim studies various enterprise markets (e.g. restaurant, retail, and banking/finance) to anticipate t…

In just over a half century since the first c-store opened in Tokyo, the definition of convenience has been reshaped over and over throughout Asia. Hear what the big ideas are in Tokyo and which ones could be coming to your market. Hosted by: Jeff Lenard About our Guest: Mark Wohltmann, Director, NACS Global Mark is responsible for the strategic de…