C-stores Could Become Go-To Destinations for Lunch
Nov 12, 2013 CSNews BELLEVUE, Wash. — Although convenience stores are currently losing the lunch battle to fast-food restaurants that have added fresher, healthier fare, they still have the chance to become the top go-to lunch destination for consumers that want quick, easy and accessible meals, according to market research firm The Hartman Group Inc.’s latest HartBeat report. Quick-service chains such as Subway and Panera Bread offer items that are lower in calories and made while customers wait, but they don’t offer the convenience desired by many busy customers who don’t have time to wait around or sit down for lunch. Meanwhile, fast-food restaurants that don’t focus on easy-to-carry sandwiches are adding portable alternatives, such as KFC’s “Go Cup” that fits in a standard car cupholder. C-stores already offer quick, easy and accessible food options, but they tend not to be as fresh or healthy, the researcher stated. As a…
Read MoreShopping mall owners slow to come to table on ‘fair contracts’
Robert Gottliebsen November 20, 2013 Business Spectator WOOLWORTHS chief executive Grant O’Brien and Coles boss Ian McLeod have woken up to just how dramatically the big corporate game is about to change in Australia with the proposed new “fair contracts” legislation. Accordingly they have moved quickly to be ahead of the game.By contrast, I fear that Westfield’s Frank Lowy and the chiefs of other shopping centre owners have misread the “fair contracts” game and are in danger of falling into the dangerous space of resorting to lobbying to delay the “fair contracts” legislation.Woolworths and Coles are too smart to be caught in what will almost certainly be an unsuccessful lobbying game.As Business Spectator has reported on many occasions, the Abbott government is like no other postwar Coalition government. It is a government dedicated to looking after Australia’s largest employment group, small enterprise, and believes that’s how it will generate employment.…
Read MoreTop trends driving growth in convenience
James Harries The retail perspective As Sainsbury’s announces that it will have more convenience stores than supermarkets next year, James Harries and Michael Freedman look at the major trends that are accelerating the growth in this expanding channel. The UK convenience market for the 12 months to April 2013 was worth £35.6bn, according to the latest IGD forecasts. Social and economic changes continue to help drive growth in the channel, with shoppers still favouring a ‘little and often’ approach to help keep to budget and reduce food waste. Pushing the boundaries of convenience Retailers are increasingly moving away form a ‘one size fits all’ approach to convenience retailing, and instead are looking to tailor their stores to meet the needs of local shoppers. Multiple convenience stores (c-stores), such as Sainsbury’s Local, have been doing this based on customer demographics for a number of years, adapting their stores to cater for…
Read MoreIssues & Leaders With Don Longo: Stan Sheetz
CSNews ALTOONA, Pa. — Who are the authorities on the future of the convenience store industry and what can you learn from them? In this series of exclusive one-on-one interviews with c-store industry leaders, Convenience Store News Editorial Director Don Longo explores the more important trends and issues facing the convenience industry. This month, Longo interviews Stan Sheetz, former CEO and now chairman of Sheetz Inc., the 450-plus convenience store chain based in Altoona. A former NACS chairman, Sheetz was inducted last week into the Convenience Store News Hall of Fame. Under his leadership, Sheetz Inc. experienced aggressive growth in number of stores and employees, achieved impressive financial success, and maintained a healthy culture to create a highly motivated and passionate employee base. Earlier this year, Sheetz Inc. was also named to CSNews’ Top 20 Growth Chains list and last October, the retailer was honored as the gold medal winner…
Read MoreOntario Seeks Ban on Flavored Tobacco
NACS Online November 14, 2013 Legislation targets flavored cigarillos and chewing tobacco. ​TORONTO – Ontario Health Minister Deb Matthews is planning to introduce legislation that would ban the sale of candy-flavored tobacco products to people under 18 years of age, the Toronto Star reports. The bill targets products that have been marketed to youth, including flavored cigarillos and chewing tobacco, in an effort to prevent young people from developing an addiction to tobacco. Ontario passed a bill in 2010 that prohibited stores from selling candy- and fruit-flavored cigarillos to youth, but the law specified the banned products include a filter. Bill sponsor France Gélinas said tobacco manufacturers simply removed the filters to skirt the law.
Read MoreIllicit tobacco funding gangs and increasing use
ALAN HOWE NOVEMBER 03, 2013 HERALD SUN Alan Howe shows how easy it was to purchase counterfeit cigarettes. Picture: Tony Gough Source:News Limited Illegal cigarettes run hot across Melbourne ILLEGAL tobacco is booming across Australia, funding international criminal gangs, and costing taxpayers more than $1 billion each year. And the introduction of plain packaging for legal cigarettes has failed, according to a report released this morning. That report states that Âtobacco consumption in Australia will rise this year for the first time since 2003. Demand for cheap counterfeit and contraband cigarettes is accelerating, driven by excise increases on legitimate tobacco. And shops dispensing Âillegal tobacco do so with Âapparent impunity, despite a fine of up to $340,000 for selling a single packet. The Tobacco Plain Packaging Act, passed in 2011, made Australia the first country to remove all logos, colour and design from cigarette packets. But a report compiled by…
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