Latest news with #C-StoreDive
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nouria names technology head following CIO's departure
This story was originally published on C-Store Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily C-Store Dive newsletter. East Coast convenience retailer Nouria has promoted Abhi Patel to vice president of information technology, the company announced via LinkedIn last week. Abhi's rise to the top of Nouria's technology department comes just days after the retailer's longtime chief information officer, Doug New, retired. 'Abhi's support-minded attitude, deep process knowledge, and ability to partner across the business make him the natural choice for this role,' New said in the announcement. Patel joined Nouria as an assistant store manager over two decades ago and eventually became the convenience retailer's first IT team member, Nouria noted. He had been the company's director of IT since early 2018, according to his LInkedIn bio, and during that time has helped Nouria build the systems, infrastructure and digital foundation that powers its business, the company said. 'His leadership during major initiatives has shown his ability to lead with both innovation and empathy,' Nouria said in its announcement. Patel takes over Nouria's IT business during a crucial time for the company, which continues to integrate the 132 convenience stores it acquired from Enmarket last year. The deal nearly doubled Nouria's c-store count and pushed it into three new states and an entirely new part of the country. Recommended Reading Nouria's chief information officer to retire Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Applegreen adds EV chargers in New Jersey
This story was originally published on C-Store Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily C-Store Dive newsletter. Applegreen has added ultrafast electric vehicle charging at eight locations along the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, the company announced in a LinkedIn post last week. The sites are compatible with NACS and CCS connectors and offer charging speeds of up to 400 kilowatts. While the convenience store industry has moderated its push for EV charging infrastructure, some retailers, like Applegreen, remain full speed ahead. Applegreen said it plans to have EV charging at all of its service areas along both the New Jersey turnpike and Garden State Parkway by the end of 2026, according to the post. This expansion continues Applegreen's EV growth in the U.S. The company announced last year that it was doubling its charging footprint in New York State as well. The new charging stations are part of Applegreen's broader $1 billion investment to improve its travel plazas across the U.S., U.K. and Ireland over the next five years. The charging speed of up to 400 kilowatts could give Applegreen a leg up on some other providers. Sites with chargers that offer at least 300 kilowatts were the most popular, seeing an average of 325 charging sessions per month, according to a report from the Transportation Energy Institute's Charging Analytics Program. Recommended Reading Applegreen to nearly double EV charging footprint in New York this year Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Small c-stores shouldn't sleep on retail media
This story was originally published on C-Store Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily C-Store Dive newsletter. When discussing convenience store retail media networks, big players like 7-Eleven, Casey's General Stores or Wawa may initially spring to mind. However, Texas-based convenience retailer TXB — whose 53 locations pale in comparison to its larger counterparts — has been making big moves in the space as well. 'Over the past several years, we've built a powerful digital ecosystem — featuring digital pump screens, in-store displays, loyalty integration, mobile app engagement, gamification, banners, email, and push messaging,' said Ben Hoffmeyer, TXB's vice president of marketing and merchandising. While large players may have scale, smaller operators offer their own benefits to potential advertisers. 'The client base that you reach by taking that approach is very different, very complementary, and in many cases, more interesting than if you try the usual larger retailers,' said Enrique Muñoz Torres, general manager of Bridg, a division of commerce media company Cardlytics. He added that getting involved in retail media can look intimidating from the outside, since it's a complicated area with many vendors. 'There's so many options that inaction can be tempting, although that's an unfortunate outcome,' said Muñoz Torres. Matt Riezman, a partner at c-store consultancy NexChapter, agreed. He added that while getting into retail media will require some baseline of technology, like customer data capturing or in-store screens, it's better for companies to start learning before they have all the technology in place. Plus, small retailers often have greater capabilities than they think. 'If you have a loyalty program and a website, that's enough to get started.' Retail media networks can bring multiple benefits. The first and most broadly applicable is incremental sales. 'What is there not to love about making money out of your space or out of your data?' asked Muñoz Torres. Stores should be seeing more than just additional sales, however. They should also see a boost in sales of advertised products, said Riezman. If not, they may want to revisit their program. TXB has seen success on both of these fronts, with not only incremental sales but also 'stronger sales performance and faster customer adoption' coming from campaigns around both new item launches and core brand items, said Hoffmeyer. Retail media can also open new ways to partner with CPGs and other companies who might want to reach a retailer's customer base, added Muñoz Torres. One benefit that smaller retailers can have is their flatter corporate structures, as decisions are often made and projects implemented quickly. That also means there's less of a chance of the marketing and merchandising teams — both of which need to be involved — coming into conflict over the program. 'A lot of these smaller retailers, those are the same team. Sometimes it's the same person,' said Rieszman. 'That's a serious advantage.' All that said, retailers need to be aware of how retail media impacts the shopping experience in their stores and on their digital platforms. 'Whether you're a big operation with hundreds of different stores, or you're a much smaller, independent thing, and at any level of scale that you have, there are solutions that I believe should be able to help you.' Enrique Muñoz Torres General manager of Bridg Hoffmeyer noted that 'by providing fewer but more impactful messages across multiple touchpoints, TXB has improved customer engagement and driven measurable sales gains. The program gives TXB 'very high revenue per 1,000 impressions' as well as click-through rates at or exceeding 90%, 'which far exceed industry benchmarks and our initial expectations,' he added. Riezman said retailers should first decide what they want out of retail media, then build a strategy to achieve that before weighing providers and technology. If they just begin shopping, they may find interesting solutions that ultimately won't work for their business or aren't cost effective. TXB followed Riezman's blueprint. 'We developed a clear strategy, roadmap, and supplier pitch decks,' said Hoffmeyer. 'We also defined our key objectives for the retail media network: to reduce guest friction while enhancing customer value, brand equity, sales and overall profitability.' Retailers also need to decide if they are going to join a broader network or build their own. The latter brings several challenges for smaller operators since CPGs may be hesitant to purchase ads from a lesser known company. 'It will be a lot harder to go and sell that inventory as a five- to 10-store chain directly to a Coke or a Red Bull, but I think there's a huge opportunity to aggregate a lot of those networks together,' said Nick Larkins, co-founder and chief product officer of audio retail media network QSIC. This can make aggregation vital for many smaller companies. Even EG America, the U.S. arm of retailer EG Group, recently joined Axonet's platform. However, Riezman noted that retailers need to be aware of the costs of those partnerships. These will vary based on what tools a retailer seeks to use. Additionally, they need to be clear about what rights they're handing over to their data in any agreement. It would sting to want to move away from a retail media partner, only to find they have contractual access to the store's data for years to come. And it's important for retailers to remember that it's not all or nothing — they can do some retail media in-house while other features run through partnerships. TXB, which has a dedicated marketing team member to run the program, also has a wide range of partners, including Dover Fueling Solutions and Paytronix, and continues to add partnerships where it makes sense, said Hoffmeyer. 'TXB recently launched non-endemic advertising in partnership with Moment Science and Brand Mobile and the early results have been outstanding.' For most retailers, what success looks like depends on their goals. For example, is the program garnering enough revenue to make a profit?Is the data being generated useful to the business, and are any outside partnerships helping the company? Additionally, is the network giving CPGs the benefits they are looking for? If not, retailers may see partners pull back on advertising after a quarter or two, said Muñoz Torres. Riezman also emphasized that learning about retail media and building a program takes time and patience. Retailers can also learn from those who've done it before, as well as providers or advisors, through events like conventions, said Riezman. TXB, which worked with NexChapter on its retail media platform, also attended multiple conferences on the topic and joined multiple advisory and share groups. Experts agreed that it's worth retailers exploring retail media, even if operators don't ultimately jump in. 'Whether you're a big operation with hundreds of different stores, or you're a much smaller, independent thing, and at any level of scale that you have, there are solutions that I believe should be able to help you,' said Muñoz Torres. Editor's note: This article was updated to correct Nick Larkins' title. 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Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
S&G Stores shuffles leadership team
This story was originally published on C-Store Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily C-Store Dive newsletter. Neal Frandsen, vice president of marketing for midwest convenience retailer S&G Stores, is expected to retire next summer, Fransden said in a statement to C-Store Dive. His successor is industry veteran Keith Broviak, who will spend the next several months onboarding. Broviak will officially join S&G — which operates 68 convenience stores across Ohio and Michigan — on June 30, Fransden said. Frandsen — who has also held leadership roles with c-store retailers including Certified Oil, GPM Investments and Turkey Hill Minit Markets over a four-decade career — said he will shift to 'handle special projects' once Broviak is comfortable enough to fully take over the position. This shift will likely occur in January, Frandsen said. Once established as the new VP, Broviak will assume direct leadership of S&G's marketing department. He will oversee all categories except for foodservice, frozen foods, ice cream, and cigarettes and other tobacco products, Frandsen said. Beyond his marketing duties, Broviak will oversee procurement for S&G's store supplies and will coordinate its network of nonprofit sponsorships and programs. Broviak has worked in the convenience retailing industry for nearly three decades. This includes serving as director of marketing for Ricker Oil for 20 years before the retailer sold its assets to Giant Eagle in 2018, as well as chief marketing officer for Coen Oil between 2019 and 2024, according to his LinkedIn bio. Broviak had been working with c-store consultancy CSD Solutions since last October. S&G also named Aaron Hirt as director of foodservice, effective April 22, Frandsen said. Hirt is responsible for revamping S&G's proprietary On The Go Bistro program as well as new fried chicken, pizza and sandwich offerings in some of the retailer's incoming remodeled stores. Hirt is also responsible for S&G's foodservice profitability and sales, as well as closely working with the operations team on proper foodservice execution and safety, product selection and promotions. He joined S&G after nearly three years with food and beverage company AVI Foodsystems, according to his LinkedIn bio. Recommended Reading New CEOs at Seven & i, Weigel's lead notable exec changes from May Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Stewart's names new president
This story was originally published on C-Store Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily C-Store Dive newsletter. Stewart's Shops Chief Operating Officer Chad Kiesow has been promoted to president of the family- and employee-owned convenience store chain, effective June 1, according to a company announcement. Kiesow's move to president was three years in the making, CEO Gary Dake said. It marks the first time in Stewart's 80-year history that the convenience retailer has a president who is not part of the founding Dake family. 'Chad has been an integral part of the business since he joined us more than three decades ago,' Dake said in the announcement. 'He understands our bottom-up culture and our focus on taking care of our people and the communities we serve.' Kiesow joined Stewart's in 1994 after the company acquired the Bonfare convenience store chain. He began managing Stewart's gas department and moved to vice president of facilities prior to becoming COO over a year ago. His promotion comes during a growth period for Stewart's, which last year decided to sell its remaining shares in the business to the employees. This ownership transition will occur over the next 15 to 20 years. The company also made its largest acquisition in years in late 2024 by purchasing the 45-store Jolley chain, which operates in Vermont, New York and New Hampshire. Kiesow said while it's 'an honor' to take on more responsibility with Stewart's, his promotion to president 'is not a sign of big changes.' 'I still have the same number of bosses that I had last week,' Kiesow said in the announcement. 'The Dakes have never been shy and they are not the kind of leaders who will sit quietly on the sidelines.' Besides his leadership role with Stewart's — which currently operates about 360 stores in the Northeast — Kiesow serves on the boards of the New York Association of Convenience Stores, the Saratoga Regional YMCA and Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce. Recommended Reading Stewart's to buy 45-store chain Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
