Above: Trying new products is one of the best things about the NACS Show.

When people ask me to name my favorite part of the NACS Show, I can’t pick just one thing. To be sure, I was honored to share the stage with Alan Meyer, CEO of Meyer Oil Company, dba Mach 1 convenience stores, and Josh Birdwell, vice president, guest/retail technology for Pilot Travel Centers, during the “Self-Checkout Strategies” education session. I learned so much from both of them, and I hope our standing-room-only audience did as well.

All of the general sessions were uniquely fabulous, and I loved seeing so many NACS members and partners I’ve worked with during the past few years as I navigated the Westgate Pavilion and the Las Vegas Convention Center.

On the Expo floor, I drank and smacked my way through many booths.”

I want to thank our faithful advertisers and supplier partners for taking the time to meet with me during the Show and invite me to sample the many new tastes heading into the convenience channel.

On the Expo floor, I drank and snacked my way through many booths—looking at you Franke Coffee Systems, Keurig Dr Pepper, PepsiCo and The Coca-Cola Company, among others! I sampled two new LTO pizzas coming from Hunt Brothers Pizza and new roller-grill sausage flavors from Johnsonville Sausage Co. At The Hershey Company booth, I got the low down on new products in the pipeline, including Reese’s Big Cup stuffed with Reese’s Puffs cereal, and spotted a demo self-checkout kiosk with merchandising tips for encouraging impulse buys.

Stopping by Texas Pete’s booth, I tried two flavors of zingy Hot Popcorn—and met someone who could be my distant cousin. I discovered Funnel Cake fries and ¡Hola! Churros at J&J Snack Foods. And at PDI Technologies, I welcomed the opportunity to sit down and discuss c-store data and insights.

There’s more to the NACS Show than any one person can cover, so this month’s issue provides a smattering of what our editorial team—Lisa King, Chrissy Blasinsky and Keith Reid—saw, heard and learned during our time in Las Vegas, October 1-4.

Enjoy our recap!