One of my favorite insights in this issue of NACS Magazine is in our cover story, “Get In on the National Day Craze.”

It’s from Jeff Hoover of Paytronix, who says these national days (think National Hot Dog Day or National Ice Cream Day) bring “new news to talk about.”

New news: Something a little different, just quirky and fun enough to prompt the customer to buy a soft pretzel on National Pretzel Day instead of a bag of chips or to eat fried chicken for lunch on National Fried Chicken Day instead of a sandwich.

An observation I hear occasionally from my NACS co-workers is that, at the end of the day, convenience stores are fun. That rings true for me: The c-store in my neighborhood might be the only store I go to regularly where shopping doesn’t feel like a chore. 

My local c-store is always bright and colorful. The clerk I see most often knows me and is friendly. I’m in and out as quickly as I want to be. Sometimes I can’t resist an impulse item that seems … fun, maybe some new flavor I haven’t seen before.

It takes a lot of hard work to make shoppers happy.

I’m still pretty new at NACS, but I was initiated into the world of convenience stores years ago. When I was 19, I spent a summer working as a cashier at a Kum & Go in Grinnell, Iowa, the town where I went to college. I stayed on part time for a few months after school started, working second shift on the weekends.

I loved working there. I found it incredibly interesting because of the customers, many of whom came in frequently enough that felt like I got to know them. I think I learned more standing behind the register than I did in any of my classes that year. But most of all the experience of working there was … fun. People came in with a smile on their face and left with a smile on their face. 

Of course, operating c-stores is serious business. It takes a lot of hard work to make shoppers happy. This issue is packed with content of special interest to category managers, the decision-makers who take the lead in figuring out how to delight customers.

“Is It Over Yet?” looks at how category managers are navigating the ongoing effects of inflation. “Trendsetters” examines how they keep their assortments fresh. And “Selling the Brands Your Customers Want” gives category managers the scoop on the top brands, including which are trending up. 

Going back to the idea of fun, be sure to check out our Ideas 2 Go profile of Wally’s, a retailer making big waves in Illinois and Missouri by making its stores quirky, colorful and memorable—especially for road trips. 

Thanks for reading. And if you have a minute, let me know what you think of this issue by sending me a note at [email protected].