Convenience Store Decisions, December 2017

CStoreDecisions ecisions com COVER STORY M AVERIK STORES ARE FAMOUS for an outdoor image and the slogan Adventures First Stop The chain is spread across 10 Western states and is the largest independent fuel marketer in the Intermountain West In addition Maverik is known for a variety of proprietary products and the Adventure Club Card loyalty program John Hillam vice president of the Power Move division which includes fuel supply logistics and marketing plays 32 Convenience Store Decisions l December 2017 an important role in helping drive the convenience chain forward In his opinion the retailer is the coolest retail convenience experience on the planet by balancing efforts to be a great place to work a great operator for our customers and a great growth company That growth metric will expand more in 2018 By the end of next year Maverik will accept commercial eet cards at each of our 300 plus stores through a gamechanging proprietary point of sale system Hillam said And in the kitchen we will be cooking and brewing up some hot new Bon re Grill items with compelling value for our customers on the go The consumers demand for fresh food and expanded fuel pump offerings is evolving and Maverik provides the coolest retail convenience experience on the planet he added There isnt any competitor in or out of our industry attacking our position in this space J UST AS CHESTNUT PETROLEUM Distributors CPD is a driving force of retail entrepreneurship in New York New Jersey and Connecticut Sharif Jamal is one of the forces driving the companys future As an operations analyst for the company which includes 300 company owned and dealer operated locations Jamal recognizes that good customer service begins with good employees I believe one of the biggest issues we continue to deal with in our region is hiring new employees Jamal said A c store sales associate is not the most glamorous job so we have to do our best to make our stores fun and interesting places to work Of course there are multiple facets to a successful convenience store operation and the family enterprise that has developed into the burgeoning CDP brand is preparing for the future That includes improving foodservice offerings for company operated sites and creating new programs to help dealers grow their business as well In 2018 we are hoping to launch more technology programs that can help automate some of our daily data entry and free up more time for our site managers to work with their teams and have more of a presence on the sales oor said Jamal I F 2017 WAS A busy year for Whitney Haslam Johnson vice president of brand and guest experience at Pilot Flying J 2018 promises to be even busier We will also be rolling out the new Pilot Express concept said Johnson These locations are a smaller format than our travel centers Through this new store model we will be highly focused on enhancing our food offerings and will provide quick healthy options Pilot Express locations will feature newly upgraded and modernized facilities in addition to standard offerings Johnson is tasked with building a strong brand presence and helping further position the companys travel centers as roadside destinations Pilot Flying J operates more than 750 Pilot and Flying J Travel Centers across North America serving more than 13 million customers daily Pilot Flying J in 2018 will expand its network through the addition of some 20 new locations Johnson said In addition the company is also highlighting the MyPilot app allowing users access to trip planners its MyRewards loyalty program and the ability to access special offers with our MyOffers feature Every day our focus is to provide great service to our guests and to deliver on our mission of connecting people and places with comfort care and a smile at every stop said Johnson John Hillam 38 Vice President Power Move Division Company Maverik Inc Headquarters Salt Lake City Number of Stores 304 Years with the Company 7 Sharif Jamal 36 Operations Analyst Company Chestnut Petroleum Distributors Inc Headquarters New Paltz N Y Number of Stores 300 Years with the Company 8 Whitney Haslam Johnson 38 Chief Experience Offi cer Company Pilot Flying J Headquarters Knoxville Tenn Number of Stores 750 Years with the Company 14