It’s that time of the year when our to-do lists are long, the days are short and we look forward to downtime with family and friends. Because I procrastinate—and who doesn’t?—I make detailed lists to keep me on track. Hard deadlines, like producing a monthly magazine or readying the house for guests, are powerful motivators for me. I find it much easier to tackle things in the short term than those long-term projects idling in the background.

Speaking of long-term projects … for fuel retailers, there’s a big hairy deadline looming in 2020 that needs attention now. Next October, retailers who haven’t upgraded their fuel-pump credit-card readers to make them EMV compliant will be on the hook for chargebacks related to counterfeit fraud and lost and stolen card fraud. In a sobering report, Conexxus found that 70% of retailers surveyed haven’t deployed any EMV-compliant sites. To be sure, 80% of those surveyed said they eventually plan to deploy. For those on the fence, the cost of upgrading and the belief that the risk doesn’t justify the expense are reasons frequently cited for not acting. Our cover story, “Ready or Not,” delves into the Conexxus findings and shares advice from retailers who have already made the switch.

Celebratory food is a favorite hallmark of the holiday season, from Thanksgiving to New Year’s.

Although c-store leaders are beginning to innovate beyond the traditional “gas, Cokes and smokes” business model, cigarettes still are a big revenue source for many retailers, accounting for about one-third of in-store sales in 2018, NACS State of the Industry data indicate. In this month’s Category Close-Up, we look at the headwinds that continue to buffet the cigarette category, from declining smoking rates to rising use of e-cigarettes to mounting regulations. In addition, to help sort out tobacco legislation and other issues NACS tracked in 2019, see “Looking Back.”

For several years now, NACS Magazine readers have enjoyed the chronicles of Frank Beard and Al Hebert as they visited c-stores on their way to the NACS Show. This year, however, Frank got married shortly after the Show—congrats Frank and Samantha!—so a road trip with Al wasn’t in the cards. But never fear! In “Nice vs. Vice,” the culinary duo shares their food finds from the 2019 Show. Guinness chocolate cake, anyone?

Celebratory food is a favorite hallmark of the holiday season, from Thanksgiving to New Year’s. My running to-do list includes baking for gifts and get-togethers, a self-imposed Dec. 15 deadline for shopping and wrapping gifts and taking time to give back by volunteering at a local food pantry. For the latter, I’m inspired by the generosity NACS members show their communities all year as highlighted in “Suppliers Giving Back.”

Savor the season!