Convenience Store In a Rapidly Changing World December 1, 1997 - Chain Store Age by Robert G. Gordon [PA Disclaimer] While this is not a "Phish" focused article, I had to include it, as its author is Bob Gordon, Mike's father. There are also some Phish references that you have to see! In order to think about where the convenience store industry has been, and where we are, I found insight in the music of that precursor of the next generation, the rock group Phish. Think about these words from "Scent of A Mule": "Kitty Malone sat on a mule/was riding in style/ when suddenly like the sound of a buzzard's breaking/Kitty felt laser beams being fired at her head/She said, "I hate laser beams and you never seen me askin' for a UFO in Tomahawk County." This industry is something like Kitty, riding in style through Tomahawk County, when suddenly everything's different. The fear of being scalped was largely under control, but now they're firing laser beams at her head ... and from a UFO to boot. What are we going to do? Well, for one thing, we're going to improve our technology, and NACS is leading the way. NACS has made a multiyear, seven-figure commitment to technology standards with five industry committees made up of volunteers from retailer and supplier ranks. NACS is moving on ECR guidelines; n@cs.tech - our annual technology trade show and conference is successful and growing; and NACS is issuing guides to price book, scanning and data mining. We're moving rapidly in the world of electronic communication. Our Web site at www.cstorecentral.com carries the latest news, developments in government, business best practices and chat rooms. C-Store Central presents the first virtual trade show in the industry. It is my vision that one day NACS will provide the best industry-oriented education available in the world electronically. It will be cost-effective, and it will be time-effective. We want the NACS Annual Meeting and Trade Show to be the premier trade show for the convenience industry in the world. This country developed the institution called convenience stores and introduced it to the world. Whatever is happening in our country happens in our stores or affects what happens in our stores. Like this country, this industry has a role for large chains and small operators. It needs advanced degrees, and it offers skills and careers to those who never received any degrees. It can be the first place of employment for those new to our country, and it can offer entrepreneurial opportunities to those who want to be in business for themselves. I want NACS to enlarge its international vision. We not only can export ideas, we can import powerful ideas from those participating in this rapidly developing industry in other countries. The ideas may be in products, in design, in services or in technology. I want NACS to offer help to the industry worldwide and to help bring new ideas from abroad to the United States. In our battle for share of the consumer's wallet, NACS intends to help this industry prevail by helping it become the Employer of Choice. My vision is that there be 10 candidates for every open convenience store position. We're working on an NACS University for store managers, on comparative employee opinion surveys, on hiring instruments, on understanding motivation and on effective rewards. We will present best practices with regards to employment techniques, and benchmarks so we can track our progress. We will pursue excellence in employee relations so that we become the Employer of Choice and, with the best people, image will no longer be a problem. We expect great battles in the government relations area. Tobacco is our major category, and we have not always been allowed a seat at the table when our fate was being discussed. We will demand to be heard, and we will be heard. This is an entrepreneurial industry. We try new things. There are more ideas zooming around the heads of the people in this industry than there are laser beams in Tomahawk County. With the help of all of you, we will prevail in our battles, and we will be the standard for delighting customers in the world. I am proud to be your chairman for the coming year. This is a great industry. It is the real thing. article © 1997 Lebhar-Friedman Inc.