Facts & Figures

$1 billion
Amount convenience stores contribute to or collect for charities annually

95%
of convenience stores support charitable causes

75%
of convenience stores say they’ve made donations when there was a specific emergency or crisis in the community

Convenience stores collect or contribute more than $1 billion a year to charitable groups. And if that’s not impressive enough, two numbers jumped off the page from our most recent NACS Consumer Survey:

• 86% of consumers say they are more likely to shop at a convenience store that actively supports causes and charities instead of a store that does not, and
• 84% of consumers say convenience retailers should talk about their charitable giving because it promotes important activities in the community.

Even more impressive, both data points increased to 90% among “opinion leaders” we surveyed, who are engaged in local issues and civic activities like zoning hearings. These findings suggest that consumers want to know that their local convenience stores support and give back to their communities.

Here’s another important community story to share with your employees and your customers: Convenience stores contribute to or collect more than $1 billion for charities annually.

Convenience stores also contribute to local charities during specific times of need. For example, 4 in 5 convenience store companies say they’ve made donations when there was a specific emergency or crisis in the community, per a 2018 Q4 NACS retailer sentiment survey.

The survey found that overall, 95% of convenience stores support charitable causes, with 66% of those stores supporting five or more charitable causes. Nearly all companies support local charities (91%) such as church groups, shelters, food banks and other non-sports groups.

Approximately half of all retailers (47%) also support national charities, more than 3 in 4 retailers (76%) contribute to youth sports groups and more than two-thirds (69%) contribute to local schools via PTAs and other fundraising activities.

At www.convenience.org/communitytoolkit, you will find resources and tools to help you tell your company’s story. Communicating what your company stands for is another element of building your brand.

Georgia Retailers Combat Human Trafficking

NACS, GACS and other c-store chains participated in the Linking Freedom event.

In July, the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores (GACS) was chosen as a 2019 Summit Award Recipient for its Convenience Stores Against Trafficking program. The award is the highest recognition under “The Power of A” Awards from the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). Among the 114 entries, GACS was recognized in the Enriching Lives category.

With more than 153,000 stores across the United States, the convenience store industry works with groups to combat human trafficking, including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, the National Safe Place Network and In Our Backyard’s Convenience Stores Against Trafficking (CSAT) program.

Earlier this year, NACS, GACS and several convenience store chains participated in CSAT’s Linking Freedom event in Atlanta. Hundreds of volunteers helped distribute “Freedom Stickers” that provided a toll-free number for victims to call, information on human trafficking and outreach books with information about local missing children. The annual event is held the week before the Super Bowl in the host city; last year more than a dozen missing children were rescued as a result of the awareness campaign. Participants focused on how convenience stores can be the eyes and ears in communities in helping lead to positive change.

To learn more about how your company can help in the fight against human trafficking, visit www.convenience.org/humantrafficking.