Starting a convenience store takes a considerable amount of time. The same goes for keeping it open. Knowing what is going on in the convenience store industry goes a long way in helping you turn your convenience store into a profitable venture.

Consider the following suggestions to help you stay current on all the convenience stores news and trends:

1. Get a handle on how events around the world affect the convenience store industry as a whole.

2. Brace yourself ahead of time for changes in consumer spending habits caused by gas price fluctuations.

3. Make the money you spend to operate your convenience store work as hard as possible.

4. Stay a step ahead of safety issues at your convenience store.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn the effect current events will have on retail convenience stores

Everything that happens in the economy affects convenience store operations. While some effects may hardly be noticeable, others will have a direct impact on the industry. It is important to find out how the events will affect your convenience store chain so you can brace yourself and your employees for the effects.

I recommend: The Association for Convenience and Petroleum Retailing blog offers detailed information about how events, such as elections and other events, could affect convenience stores around the nation. You can find blog entries that contain solutions to some of the most common convenience store issues, including employee retention, at Convenience Store Decisions. For an authoritative look at the wider world of convenience store franchising and marketing, try Chain Store Age.

Stay current on factors that affect fuel costs for the convenience store industry

The gas pumps are the main attraction of any convenience store, even stores that market themselves as convenience food retailers. Knowing as much as you can about the factors that affect fuel prices, such as crude oil costs, and things that affect refineries, such as hurricanes, allows you to prepare for rising costs that may negatively affect business or falling costs which may necessitate an increase in employees.

I recommend: You will find detailed information about the cost of gas, diesel, petroleum and oil on the Energy Information Administration website. Oil & Gas Journal offers RSS feeds to numerous topics relating to gas prices, including crude oil price watch services and up to the minute wire news.

Get ideas to stretch your convenience stores budget

When money is tight for a business, you have to try to maximize the effect of every dollar. The ideas about how to stretch the budget of your convenience store can come to you easily or you may have to look for solutions.

I recommend: Convenience Store News is an online and in print magazine that offers region specific news. This magazine has articles that focus on numerous convenience store concerns, including how to deal with economic problems and changes. You can find numerous articles about ways to maximize your money in the convenience store business by reading the Convenience Store/Petroleum online newsletter.

Ensure employees and customers at convenience stores stay out of harm's way

Safety is a top concern of convenience store chains. Sadly, many convenience stores are robbed on a regular basis. Taking steps to prevent this from happening and training your employees how to handle a robbery are imperative to keeping everyone safe.

I recommend: Florida Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association has detailed safety information, including risk assessment sheets, specifically for convenience stores. You will find a detailed study on convenience store safety concerns and solutions at Center for Problem-Oriented Policing.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Visit the convenience store franchise operations located close to your store to get ideas about how to attract customers to your store.

Convenience stores can be profitable retail businesses. A successful convenience store business is typically located in an easily accessible area and stays open for extended hours. Retail convenience stores make money by selling gasoline, cigarettes, beverages and food products to their customers. Many convenience stores offer hot food that is prepared on site, as well as hot and cold customer-dispensed beverages.

Starting a convenience store offers you a couple of options. You can open an independently owned convenience store or you can purchase a convenience store franchise.

Many convenience store chains offer franchises for purchase. They require you to invest more money up front but help you get your business started and teach all you need to know about convenience store operations. They also give your business instant name recognition, which brings you customers.

Whether you decide to open your own convenience store or purchase a convenience store franchise, keep the following things in mind when you start your business:

1. Convenience store chains will teach you the business when you purchase a franchise.

2. Convenience stores typically stock at least 500 different products.

3. The business of retail convenience stores is constantly changing.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find a convenience store business

Purchase a convenience store business that is already up and running or buy into a franchise and learn convenience store operations.

I recommend: Look for an independently owned convenience store at Business Nation and BizBuySell.com. Shop for an established convenience store business at Franchise Advantage. Locate franchises available for purchase at Franchise Opportunities LLC.

Supply your convenience store business with the right products

Fill your convenience store shelves with the products your customers want to buy. This includes cigarettes, beer, sodas and sports drinks, as well as many snack foods. Convenience food retailers typically sell candy, gum, salty snacks, packaged meats, packaged sweet snacks and milk products.

I recommend: Locate convenience food distributors at BD Metrics Inc. and connect with beer distributors at Micro Matic Inc.

Attend a convenience store industry trade show

Stay current with the latest trends in the convenience store industry to keep your business competitive. Connect with convenience store suppliers and learn about new products. Attend workshops to expand your industry knowledge and serve your business needs.

I recommend: Register to attend the National Association of Convenience Stores "SHOW," at NACS. Sign up for SNAXPO, a national trade show for the snack food industry sponsored by the Snack Food Association.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Make your convenience store business more profitable with appropriate convenience store point of sale (POS) software. This allows you to track your inventory and keep your shelves stocked with the products your customers prefer.
• •  Choose the best location for your convenience store business. Convenience stores must be easily accessible to pedestrians and have a parking lot. They are also typically located in buildings that are less than 5,000 square feet.

Whether you plan to own several locations of a convenience store franchise or a single shop, it is essential that you are prepared to manage every aspect of the business. You will need an education in business management to learn how to oversee the daily tasks of running a store and you must hire and train employees to deal with the public, handle money and handle all the other requirements of your establishment. Customer service and knowledge of the industry are key to the survival of your store, because if customers are not happy with their experience they will go to one of your competitors.

Convenience stores education and training should begin before any new employee is hired and continue the entire time each person works for you. Make your store the one people return to regularly by offering them the most well-trained and educated clerks around. Some steps you can take to accomplish this goal are:

1. Get the education you need to manage a business;

2. Have employees attend seminars for convenience food retailers;

3. Keep updated on the latest news about retail convenience stores;

4. Require your staff to take training courses to expand their knowledge about the business.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Take business administration classes to learn how to run a convenience store chain

Managing and operating a convenience store is a lot of work. There are a plethora of responsibilities, such as accounting, working with vendors, inventory, starting lines of credit, payroll and more. You can learn these skills by taking a business administration course. Earning a Bachelor's Degree in this field will give you the background, education and training you need to take on all the duties that come with running a convenience store.

I recommend: Enroll in courses at Rasmussen College, South University or DeVry University. Get an online education from Kaplan Higher Education.

Get training for the convenience store industry

When starting a convenience store you need to hire enough people to run your operation full time and, after the location is open, you will occasionally require new workers. One of the best ways to ensure your employees are ready to start their jobs and to encourage them to stay long term is to send them to training courses about the convenience store business. Classes are available at physical locations or online and they will give your crew the knowledge and preparation to become adept at running your store.

I recommend: Check out online courses from Ivy Associates. Get hands on training from Barrier Motor Fuels.

Find current convenience store information online

Keep your staff current on the latest news about retail convenience store chains. Bookmark websites that offer the most recent articles and share anything of importance with your employees. The articles will be about everything from convenience store operations or the latest trendy products, to how to display merchandise in the most appealing and effective manner.

I recommend: Stay updated with articles from Convenience Store News, Newser or FeedBurner.

Keep up the convenience stores education and training with seminars

Seminars for convenience retail chains are a great way to find out about what stores around the country are doing, hear success stories and make business contacts. You will also learn about what will be happening in the convenience store industry in the near future. These informative gatherings usually only last two or three days so your staff will not be gone long.

I recommend: Attend a seminar held by the South Carolina Association of Convenience Stores. Try an online seminar from Nielsen Web Seminars.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Can't afford to take most of your staff to a seminar? Send one trusted employee and have them relay the information they learn to the rest of your crew.
• •  Educate your staff on the store policies regarding criminal activity on the premises.
• •  Train your staff to work the cash registers quickly. People want a convenience store experience that is fast and efficient.