Clean Bathrooms – Do They Really Impact C-Store Performance? I get asked this question a lot these days. I was interviewed recently. The reporter asked the question whether having a cleaning bathroom really made a difference to store sales or overall customer satisfaction. She admitted that it mattered to her and she believes that most …

C-Store staff retention – Many  owners argue it is their top challenge. The improving economy is often cited for making a difficult job of C-Store staff retention even harder. While all positions are important the one that I hear about the most is the challenge of finding and keeping good store managers. Sometimes the situation …

Tom Bandy has written a book about C-Store Tips – If You Have Time to Lean. These tips are collected in one book. Winning C-Store customers and keeping them is the result of smart work by everyone who works in a convenience store, from the team who keep the coolers humming to the owner. We’ve …

Meeting plans are valuable. Store manager meetings are expensive. In order to have the desired impact it is useful to plan c-store manager meetings for high performance. Setting the meeting goals and creating an impactful meeting makes sense. Store manager meetings are a critical part of operations. It is hard to have a perfect meeting, …

C-store managers are constantly faced with urgent items that come up and interrupt what they’re doing, often right in the middle of a busy shift. If ignored, a small but real problem may fester and get worse. Without good information, the manager is more likely to misdiagnose the problem and come up with the wrong …

A tough part about using technology to help people do their job is defining responsibilities. Unfortunatly, we sometimes confuse technology with a system for c-store performance. We all know the promise – this technology will fix the problem immediately, there is no install time and your staff does not have to change anything. It seems …

When managing C-Store High Performance – How Important is Appreciation? Firstly, High performance teams display their success on a regular basis. When you are part of such a team you become part of its environment. That is, you are recognized and engaged. As a result, you feel the sense of teamwork. Secondly, you are noticed …

Operators often ask if C-Store Analytics can really make any difference. They ask if knowledge drives c-store sales.  Assuming that solving problems can positively improve sales and profits, the question can be refined as follows: How Does  Knowledge Impact Decisions? Surprisingly, the answer seems to vary widely.  Talking to different operators yields lots of answers. …

The Inertia of C-Store Performance calls for a time for change. When putting new processes and technologies into place to save time or increase profits, there are lots of things that can impact success. Even if you are making changes specifically to address waste that harms the team, the beneficiaries of the change will still …

Occasionally when we speak with C-Store management teams about C-Store Analytics and their first response is “We already have a back office system.” Back back office systems are so important to c-store operations. However, they are focused on the pricing, inventory and profits. Of course, back office systems are important. Most C-Store operators should should …

Yep. It works. Best intentions are good, but inspections are better.  How many times in our training do we hear this question about whether corporate is watching c-store accountability. The answer ‘yes’ carries a certain gravity. No one wants to disappoint or fail. There are lots of reasons why we slip up. We want to do a …

Yogi Berra was often lampooned for his seemingly non-sensible statements. But the easy to remember and thoughtful concepts help to clarify issues and allow simple choices.  His ‘take the fork’ statement made sense when you understand that he lived mid-way on a circular road. When driving to his house you came to a fork. Either …