GHRA In Action

AUGUST 2014
PLAN
ANALIZE
Staying Focused
on your Goals
Re-evaluating your business for
the remainder of 2014
Page 3
MEASURE
How to Build a
Hot Food Program
pg. 7
IMPLEMENT
Helping to Take
a Bite Out of Crime
pg. 12
GHRA BOARD
President’s Notes
Dear GHRA Members,
Rahim Momin
President
Zulfikar Ali Maknojia
Senior Vice President
Rafique N. Ali
Negotiation - Chairman
Vice President
Ahmed Hasora
Honorary Secretary
Mahemood Momin
Treasurer
Lehjatali Momin
Warehouse Chairman
Shamsuddin Maredia
Director
Asif Davwa
Director
Sherali Haiderali
Director
Rahim Maknojia
Director
Tajddin Momin
Director
Mubarak Dhukka
Director
Zulfiqar Kurjee
Director
OFFICE
12790 South Kirkwood Rd.,
Stafford, TX 77477
Ph. 281.295.5300
Fax. 281.295.5399
www.ghraonline.com
The year is half over, which is the perfect time to take stock of your progress
and make sure you are on track to have the kind of year you had planned.
There is still time to take a fresh look at your numbers and make any necessary
adjustments. Here at GHRA, our mid-year reviews were very positive and
indicate positive growth for the first half of 2014. We are seeing sales increases
in every category along with member growth. In areas that need adjusting, we
are making those changes to ensure that we meet our plan.
This month is the perfect time to re-evaluate your own plan to ensure you are
meeting your goals. It is not too late to brainstorm ideas that can move your
business to the next level. Now is the time to decide what you are doing right,
as well as what you are doing wrong. Take a look at your team – do you need
more people? Are you retaining customers? Now is the time to re-evaluate
and tweak if needed.
Marketing is important to all of us. We know our business and our target
audience so when it comes to marketing don’t get overwhelmed with all the
options. Focus on communicating the GHRA Spanner and posters message,
along with your food service offering. Keeping the message to 4 items helps
communicate to your customers what exactly you want to sell them and that
you know them well.
Also, while it might sound difficult, sometimes competitive analysis can be as
simple as reviewing your top competitors in a 2.5 mile radius. Are they offering
incentives? Are they marketing something you’re not? Adjust your business
and marketing to reflect your new insight.
Lastly, an important part of a mid-year review is motivating your team to keep
up the hard work or refocus if goals are not being met. Rewarding success,
whether it is through a pat on the back, a bonus, a promotion, or a team outing,
tells your employees they are valued contributors and play an integral part in
the overall success of the business.
Ensure your business is in the best shape possible for a successful year end.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Rahim Momin
2
In Balance
T
aking
advantage
of opportunity…
As we all
know, doing
business in a
soft economy
has unique
challenges.
It is also true
Mike Thompson
Chief Executive Officer that doing
business in a
growing economy has unique
challenges as well. In case you
haven’t noticed, the Houston area
is experiencing historical growth.
The U.S. Census Bureau reported
that in the past year, Houston,
The Woodlands and Sugar Land
area has gained over 220,000
residents.
Where is the growth coming
from? Births: 58%, International
migration: 25.5% and Domestic
migration: 16.5%.
Economic growth means more
potential customers along with
new competition. Stay competitive!
Good things don’t necessarily
last forever! You have to keep
doing those things that improve
the business. If you are fortunate
to have seen growth in your
business, don’t become content
and lose sight of those things that
are important to maintaining that
growth. I’ve seen it so many times,
owners developing very successful
businesses through hard work and
determination only to see those
businesses decline due to lack of
focus and attention.
Almost half of the population
growth is coming from international
or domestic migration. We should
continually monitor our store
offerings to meet the needs and
desires of the area’s population.
Your product offerings should
be diverse with the right amount
of variety that appeals to a
continually changing demographic.
This requires constant attention.
As your business grows older,
invest back in its infrastructure.
New and beautiful stores are
being built every day in the area.
Keep your store fresh and clean.
It doesn’t matter how well you run
the business inside if the outside
doesn’t invite anyone in! Be careful
not to become that dinosaur on
the side of the road that once
was the best place to shop in the
community.
Let’s take advantage of the
economic growth by working
harder and investing more into our
businesses for long term success.
Don’t allow this phenomenal
growth to calm your determination
to succeed. The future is bright
for GHRA! 
THANK YOU GHRA Members for
another solid year of partnership.
Please see the "Promotions-In-Action" Section of this magazine
for a one time, hot Mountain Dew 12 pack promotion for August.
Stock UP today!
3
Director’s Notes
From the Desk of the Senior Vice President
Zulfikar Ali Maknojia
Recently you may have received a letter (e-mail) from the USDA- Food and Nutrition service about a change in the
SNAP EBT Terminal and related service program. If you are accepting the SNAP card at your store then please be sure
to read that letter (or e mail) and make the necessary change prior to September 21. Thank you for your support
Sincerely,
Zulfikar Maknojia
From the Desk of the Vice President - Negotiation Chairman
Rafique N. Ali
Our 2015 strategy formulation is progressing. Please continue to support the 2014 programs, spanners, posters and
flyers to optimize these efforts. Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Rafique N. Ali
From the Desk of the Honorary Secretary
Ahmed Hasora
There are 1197 stores set up on the GHRA Web Portal and 722 users. Remember the portal is a secure network for
pricing information, planograms, contacts for key partners and the “GHRA In Action” magazine. Thank you for your
support.
Sincerely,
Ahmed Hasora
From the Desk of the Treasurer
Mahemood Momin
Thank you for your support of the many programs that contribute to our everyday business and the development of our
warehouse operation. That support fuels our success and allows GHRA to continue to grow and evolve in the market.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Mahemood Momin
4
Feature
Energy Drinks, Enhanced Waters
Leading C-store Beverage Sales
NEW YORK – Energy drinks and
bottled waters are largely responsible for
the 2.8-percent increase in non-alcoholic
beverage sales in convenience stores
during the first quarter of 2014, according
to the latest Wells Fargo Securities LLC's
Beverage Buzz survey. Their strong sales
offset declines in juices and carbonated
soft drinks (CSDs).
Retailer respondents who saw the
strongest growth in the non-alcoholic
segment -- as high as 10 percent
-- generally had favorable weather
conditions, solid foot traffic and strong
energy drink sales. Iced tea and
enhanced waters also performed well,
with flavored sparkling water brands
exhibiting a "breakout year."
For the remainder of 2014, c-store
retailers continue to be the most
optimistic about energy drinks, expecting
them to see 10-percent sales growth,
followed by enhanced waters/sports
drinks at 7.7 percent growth. They expect
general CSD sales to fall 1.3 percent,
5
but be offset by 1.1-percent growth in
flavored CSDs.
Monster Energy Corp. is expected
to lead the energy segment in growth,
possibly resulting in the segment's
expansion in shelf space.
For CSDs, the survey estimates that
a decline in The Coca-Cola Co.'s sales
volume in the first quarter was offset
by pricing increases, while PepsiCo
Inc. saw slight volume growth with
stronger performance by the Mountain
Dew brand. Retailers report that the Dr
Pepper Snapple Group's mid-calorie TEN
line is generating "weak" repeat sales,
prompting its removal from many store
shelves.
"As we have stated previously, we
are increasingly fearful that TEN may
follow in the footsteps of countless other
brand extensions that fail to become
meaningful brands," said Bonnie Herzog,
managing director of tobacco, beverage
and consumer research at Wells Fargo
Securities.
Weather continues to be the biggest
stumbling block for beverage sales.
C-stores that saw decreased sales
blamed poor weather conditions for
the drop. "Weather is impacting guest
counts in key geographies throughout the
country, which placed downward pressure
on sales," said one retailer.
Still, while three-quarters of
respondents indicated that disruptive
winter weather had a worse impact on
sales relative to last year, this is an
improvement from the first quarter of
2013, when 100 percent of respondents
suggested that weather was worse,
according to the latest survey report.
Retailers and consumers should see
some pricing relief in the beverages
category during the second quarter.
Retailer respondents expect no price
increases during the quarter, and many
believe price levels have reached or
already exceeded their limits for the year,
based on what customers are willing to
pay.
Food Service
How to Build a Hot Food Program
By Maureen Azzato | www.csnews.com
B
reakfast is the best meal to consider
when launching a hot foods program
The reason for that is most
convenience stores already have a strong
and loyal morning customer base they
can leverage and entice to try something
new, according to the Convenience Store
News for the Single Store Owner How To
Crew of experts. Breakfast programs are
also fairly inexpensive to execute, and a
decent program can be developed with
just five or six items.
The best way to begin is to test two
or three breakfast sandwiches with
shoppers and determine which they like
best and what sales levels to expect,
according to Tim Powell, a member of the
CSNews for the Single Store Owner How
To Crew and a foodservice consultant
with THINK Research & Consulting. “The
key to keeping hot foods relevant is to
offer two to three mainstream products,”
he said, “such as a ham and egg biscuit,
sausage biscuit with cheese, and/or an
egg burrito along with seasonal limitedtime offers.
Once a hot breakfast program is
established, it is then easier to expand
into hot lunch and snack items, our
experts agree. The idea is to start small,
build a strong foundation and use the
breakfast program as a building block.
You should begin by knowing what you
want to achieve in the end, but realize
that it will take time, focus and patience to
get there.
It’s important to understand what your
customers want before building the menu,
so be sure to ask them. As a single-store
owner, you are extremely close to your
customers and should rely on them for
advice and feedback.
From the outset, it’s also critical to
decide how you want to serve your
customers hot food –– grab and go or
made to order –– because that will affect
the type of items offered, the cooking and
holding methods used, and the equipment
that needs to be purchased. At the
beginner level, most experts recommend
a grab-and-go hot food program until
execution is flawless.
“Keep it simple. Get bored with the
basics first,” one How To Crew expert
said, noting that grab and go is ideal
because it requires “minimal touch” and
is a great way to begin to incorporate a
foodservice culture into your store.
Also “examine the state of your store
with a critical eye on cleanliness,” said
Donna Hood Crecca of foodservice
consultancy Technomic Inc., another
member of the How To Crew. “Restaurant
[level] cleanliness is crucial, as it fosters
consumer confidence that this is an
establishment from which they can
purchase hot foods.”
The Lunch Daypart
After breakfast is perfected, then
consider the lunch daypart and
investigate what sells in your local area.
The burger seems to be the beginner
hot lunch menu item that most experts
recommend because it’s easy to execute
and many varieties can be sold by using
different cheeses, toppings, sauces
and breads. A high-quality fried chicken
patty is the second easiest hot sandwich
to execute, and also popular with
consumers.
Easy sides and snack items to add to
the menu might include fries, mac and
cheese bites, or onion rings that can
be either cooked in an oven or fryer,
depending upon the type of product
purchased. Soups, stews and chili
are other easy hot items to add that
simply require reheating, and proper
merchandising and rotation.
Single-store owners who have
advanced foodservice programs should
utilize limited-time offers to drive trial of
new items and differentiate their menus.
Ultimately, the goal is to develop a
foodservice program with some unique
items that drive traffic to your store.
6
Food Service
Once the breakfast and lunch dayparts
are perfected with both hot and cold food
offerings, single-store owners can then
transfer some of that success over into
the dinner daypart. Although few in the
convenience store industry have figured
out the best approach to dinner, one thing
is certain: A strong hot food program
will help build the evening business,
especially if your store currently has
strong evening foot traffic.
The Right Equipment
As is true with all foodservice programs
— hot and cold — consistent execution is
vitally important. Putting the right systems
in place, focusing on training and buying
the proper equipment — and using and
maintaining it correctly — will all support
strong in-store execution.
When it’s time to select equipment,
one of the most important considerations
is functional intent. In other words, how
will your product be cooked and held?
Will you be rethermalizing alreadycooked food? Do you need moist
holding equipment (for hot sandwich
meat components such as meatballs or
sausage), or dry holding equipment for
fried foods so they remain crispy? Will
you need both?
Because the menu drives everything
–– from ingredient procurement and
inventory to equipment selection –– be
entirely sure about the scope of your
menu and how you plan to execute before
purchasing any equipment. With space
consideration in a c-store so critical, it’s
also important to find space-efficient
equipment that is versatile and can be
used across many menu items. 
PINNACLE PROPANE EXPRESS
Wishes to thank all GHRA members for the continuous support as we celebrate 6 years of service to your organization.
We take pride in our service to all GHRA members and hope the below information assists you in meeting your customers propane needs
Toll Free number 866‐Have Gas (428‐3427) Email [email protected]
Please make this your first line of communication to Pinnacle Propane Express. If you request an ETA our Customer Care Staff will be glad to call you back before the end of business day with an ETA or a resolution to your call. PLEASE REQUEST A CALL BACK
If you have not received a call back from our Customer Care Staff please contact Emily Clancy:
Emily Clancy Customer Service Supervisor / Major Account Support Specialist Contact information : Email‐ [email protected]
Office direct: 847‐406‐2031
Cell 224‐572‐3443
Fax 847‐406‐2040
Sincerely,
Rob Vrankovich
Director of National Accounts
Contact Information is:
[email protected]
Cell Number—630‐479‐9750
7
Technology
Tech Conference Tackles Future
of Couponing
By Brian Berk | Convenience Store News
T
he future of couponing will be
electronic offers targeted to an
individual, not a paper coupon specifically
promoting a particular product.
“Manufacturers will not just throw a
coupon in a newspaper and hope for
a good redemption rate,” said Patrick
Lewis, CEO of convenience store chain
Oasis Stop N Go LLC and an owner
of loyalty program provider Kickback
Rewards Systems. Oasis Stop N Go
operates 13 c-stores in southern Idaho.
“Paper couponing may have some
place, but its importance will be nowhere
near the same level it has been [in the
past],” he continued.
Lewis led a three-hour breakout
strategy session on digital couponing
and loyalty during the second day of the
2014 PCATS Annual Conference, hosted
by the Petroleum Convenience Alliance
for Technology Standards (PCATS) and
taking place at Tucson’s Loews Ventana
Canyon Resort. (Later that evening,
PCATS announced it was changing its
name to Conexxus effective immediately
and the conference would now be known
as the Conexxus Annual Conference.)
Lewis has served as chairman of the
PCATS Loyalty Working Group for the
past seven years, where his role is to
recommend standards for the loyalty and
digital coupon segments of the PCATS
organization.
During yesterday’s strategy session,
he noted that targeted mobile offers will
now be based on prior purchases made
by a consumer. Thanks to the fact that
paper coupons have not proved popular
at convenience stores, the channel is
at the forefront of the mobile couponing
movement.
“Everything is going mobile,” Lewis
said. “Interest in e-coupons has risen
dramatically in the past couple of years.”
He did acknowledge that some
roadblocks stand in the way of mobile
e-couponing, but they can be overcome.
The first roadblock is what he referred to
as “multiple token acceptance.”
“For example, if a consumer presents
two separate 5-cent fuel rollback offers,
will the [point-of-sale system at the pump]
stack the deal and allow for a 10-cent
discount?” Lewis asked. “Or will it reject
one of the offers? That’s something that
needs to be worked on.”
The tax implications of mobile
couponing is another issue that must be
clarified, the executive added. “Should
coupons be taxed?” Lewis questioned.
“We’re going to need to figure that out.
Tax laws vary greatly from state to state,
so that’s going to be complicated.”
The 2014 Conexxus Annual Conference
continues through Thursday, May 1. 
8
Saftey
Securing the Convenience Store
S
ecurity remains an ongoing concern
for convenience store operators, but
new technologies and approaches are
offering some great help. And great help
is a great asset, because there is a lot of
work to be done.
Bad economic times mean increases in
petty theft at retail. In fact, U.S. retailers
lost $34.8 billion in stolen merchandise
last year, according to the National Retail
Federation (NRF). To cover those costs,
the group said, consumers pay an extra
1.5 cents per dollar at retail, or about
$354 a year, in additional expense per
household.
Innovations in safes, cash-handling
systems and robbery deterrents
are making c-stores safer and more
profitable. Among the approaches
retailers should consider:
Biometrics: Scot Lins, an independent
consultant who served more than
a decade as senior director of loss
prevention at 7-Eleven, said biometrics
offer an area where there is significant
application potentials.
“It’s perfect for the c-store industry as
it relates to age-restricted product sales,”
Lins said. “That probably opens a whole
other issue in terms of coordination with
the various state alcohol and tobacco
agencies. But to be able to use biometrics
for the purposes of being able to identify
whether or not a person is legal age to
buy cigarettes or alcohol would be a great
thing.”
Training alone isn’t always effective.
“You can increase training for employees
all you want, but people are human, and
they make mistakes,” Lins said. “They
may get fooled by a fake driver’s license
or ID card, and then that application of
biometrics could be pretty beneficial.”
Technology has improved quite
a bit over the last five years, said
Joe LaRocca, vice president of loss
prevention for the National Retail
Federation. “When it comes to safes,
we have seen a lot of work done with
biometrics.”
Systems that identify employees
9
by their fingerprints can provide what
LaRocca called “real, true individual
authentication, and with some safes a lot
of the auditing capabilities. Certainly a lot
of work has been done to integrate the
time lock and the combination process
into some sort of central repository. We
have seen it typically in banks, but now
even the convenience store technology
is becoming more readily available,
and something you can connect to your
network, your alarm system, etc.”
Of course there is a higher cost, but
LaRocca added, “on the back end you’re
getting that increased security, that
increased audit capability and some level
of individual authentication.”
Many counter that a biometric approach
is too expensive. “For a small operator,
perhaps,” LaRocca said. “But that
technology is becoming more and more
common. Six or seven years ago you
would never have said that that there
would be biometrics on your PC. Today,
however, many personal computers and
laptops have readers built in. Some, for
example, let you just wave your finger
over the reader to log in. The same is
true with some multiple locks and safe
technology we’re starting to see.”
7-Eleven was not looking at biometric
systems, Lins said, but he believes it
has come a long way as far as reliability,
whether it includes fingerprints or retinal
scanning.
“We just didn’t feel it was an application
that we had an immediate use for it
as it related to cache handling,” Lins
said. “Down the road, however, that will
change. I can see it in an application with
cash handling. I could definitely see it
integrated into a POS application, with
employees who right now may sign on
using the last four digits of their social
security numbers.”
Lins also sees a role for a biometric
application for signing on to the register,
or time and attendance tracking.
“The safe world has not changed
that much in the last 150 years,” said
Corin Angel, marketing manager for The
Modern Safe Co. in Dania, Fla. “You have
digital locks today, and biometric systems
now that read fingerprints. But the quality
of safes and the thickness of the steel
still works—those haven’t really changed
much.”
Angel, however, has not seen an
increase in the use of fingerprint readers
in convenience stores. “Usually they don’t
want to spend the money,” she said.
On the issue of affordability, Lins
Safety
pointed out that while most people think
of 7-Eleven as a giant that can afford
nearly anything, it is also fast becoming
a 100% franchise organization. “Yes, it’s
the world’s largest convenience store
retailer, but it’s made up of thousands
of independent sole proprietors, and
so affordability is an issue,” he said. “I
think it’s going to be that way for a while
because of the cost of labor and all
the things that have put retailers under
pressure these days.”
“Intelligent” Safes: While there haven’t
been many advances in the construction
of safes, there have been some
significant breakthroughs in “intelligent”
safe technology, said Edward McGunn,
president and CEO of Corporate Safe
Specialists. “Specific advances are
centered around bill validating and
bill accepting, right at the store level,”
he said. “Employees basically take
the money from the till and put it in an
intelligent safe that counts it.”
Another development has been
the ability of intelligent safes to
transmit content reports directly to the
storeowners’ bank. “It’s just like when you
deposit money in your bank,” McGunn
said. “You have to drive to the bank and
process it with the clerk. Then it gets
posted, but it’s not really posted that day.
It takes some time, especially if it’s a
check, to clear.”
When cash is in the store, retailers
have that same problem. It’s usually a
two- or three-day drag to get that cash.
“The latest technology integrates the
safe into the POS system,” said Lins,
“thereby allowing the daily cash report to
be automatically completed and the funds
available much sooner.”
With this newer type of system,
McGunn explained, the cash goes in
the safe and that content report gets
deposited electronically to their bank
account that night, so it really helps cash
management.
“It also really helps with the illumination
of cash,” McGunn said. “If you have 10
or 15 stores and they are all reporting
to your bank, then all you have to do is
look at your bank deposit. That is a better
way to illuminate what your actual cash
position is. These intelligent safes are
solving that cash management drag time.”
Ultimately, manufacturers need to
help storeowners by reducing the time
that managers need to participate in the
cash-management portion of in-store
operations. “If intelligent safe technology
can be embedded in a self-service kiosk
so that convenience store customers in
the future would be able to scan their
own items and pay for their own items—
including using cash—that would really
free up a lot of operational time,” McGunn
said. “Right now, self-serve kiosks are not
a good revenue driver for convenience
stores.”
Safe and Secure: “There are obviously
all sorts of drop safes,” said Angel. “There
are tips always available to help make
something more secure.”
There are also anti-bevel and what
some call “anti-fish” baffles available
on safes. “You have a depository
mechanism, whether it is a rotary hopper,
which would be top-loading, or front- or
rear-loading,” Angel said. “The anti-fish
baffle keeps them from going ‘fishing’ for
the envelopes or the cash that are inside
the site. It prevents them from being able
to stick their hands, or a device, in and
removing the contents.”
Obviously, bolting down the safe is
going to increase the security as well,
Angel said, “since not being able to walk
out with it is the primary thing. Operators
also want to take a look at how the safe
is constructed. For convenience stores,
more than likely they are looking for the
depository type of safes, where they are
able to just drop money in, and then the
manager will be able to access that.”
Having a safe with a dual-key system
is helpful, for the obvious reason: “There
is a secondary person present in order
to open the safe. Having a second set
of eyeballs as a witness is always an
additional preventative,” Angel said.
Sound Approach: Moving Sound
Technologies Inc. in Vancouver, Canada,
is marketing a unique security device, the
Mosquito ultrasonic teenage deterrent,
which it bills as “the solution to the eternal
problem of unwanted gatherings of youths
and teens.”
The device is essentially a sounder
unit that emits a very high-frequency
modulated tone (17.5–18.5 kHz) that
is completely harmless even with long
term use. The safe, non-confrontational
anti-loitering device discourages antisocial youth or adults from gathering on
or nearby your premises. Add-on features
include remote control, motion sensor
and timer. Further, the company says
the device has a 90-100% success rate.
It’s currently being used by Alimentation
Couche-Tard’s Mac’s convenience stores
in Canada.
“We refer to it as a crime-deterrent
product,” said Mike Gibson, president of
Moving Sound Technologies. “When they
hear the sound they find it very annoying,
and will move away from the area within a
couple of minutes.”
The sound falls well within the
hearing protection standards of the
U.S. Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA). The firm’s latest
advance, the Mosquito MK4 Multi-Age,
can be set to 17KHz to disperse groups
of troublesome teenagers, or to 8 KHz to
disperse people of any age from areas
where loitering can be an issue.
Preventing problems is better than
solving them, good advice for retailers
during economically stressful times. 
ALL rebate information
is accessible via the
web portal. Please go in
and create your unique
I.D. today and delegate
authorities to your store
manager of choice.
WWW.GHRAONLINE.COM
10
Education
TravelCenters, Shell Jointly Open
First LNG Lanes
ONTARIO, Calif. -- TravelCenters of
America LLC teamed up with Shell North
America Inc. to open its first two liquefied
natural gas (LNG) fueling lanes at a Petro
location here.
In addition to LNG now being
available at the Petro location at 4325 E.
Guasti Road in Ontario, TravelCenters
completed retrofitting several other TA
and Petro Truck Service facilities to bring
them in line with industry standards and
regulations for completing truck service
repairs on both compressed natural gas
(CNG) and LNG trucks.
The retrofitted locations are:
lanes at TravelCenters locations along the
U.S. interstate highway system. The two
companies will build at least two natural
gas fueling lanes for large over-the-road
trucks, and related storage capacity, at
up to 100 TA and Petro Stopping Center
locations nationwide, based on customer
demand. Shell will supply the natural gas
fuel to these locations.
Shell selected Cleveland-based Chart
Industries Inc. to design, manufacture
"All of our LNG lanes at Ontario and
and commission 20 retail LNG fueling
future locations will be 'super lanes'
stations, including the lanes at the Petro
in that the lanes are equipped with
location in Ontario. The LNG fueling
dispensers that allow pumping of LNG,
stations are fully automatic, have a low
diesel and diesel exhaust fluid. This
working pressure and are sized to fill
ensures that those lanes can be fully
100 to 150 trucks per day with two LNG
utilized while the demand for LNG ramps dispensers.
up over the coming months and years,"
As it enters into the emerging natural
said Tom O'Brien, president and CEO of
gas market, TravelCenters is basing
TravelCenters. "Additionally, by locating
site selection and construction of its
the LNG lanes with the existing fuel lanes, LNG fueling network on demand, with
we haven't interrupted truck traffic flow or sites being developed in phases along
reduced available truck parking spaces at heavily traveled long-haul transportation
these sites."
corridors, according to the Westlake,
In April 2013, TravelCenters and Shell
Ohio-based company.
announced an agreement to build and
TravelCenters plans to have 10 more
operate a network of natural gas fueling
LNG fueling sites open by the end of
• Petro Ontario, Calif.
• TA Harrisburg, Pa.
(Interstate 81, exit 77)
• TA Baytown, Texas
(I-10, exit 789)
• TA Dallas South, Texas
(I-20, exit 472)
• TA San Antonio, Texas
(I-10, exit 583)
11
2014.
TA and Petro Stopping Centers Truck
Service facility retrofits will enable TA
Truck Service and Petro:Lube facilities
to provide the same maintenance and
repairs on both CNG and LNG trucks as
they do on diesel trucks. TravelCenters
is working with the Natural Gas Vehicle
Institute (NGVi) on training to ensure that
its technicians are fully trained on service
procedures and safety precautions.
TravelCenters of America operates
travel centers in 43 states and Canada,
operating under the TA and Petro
Stopping Centers brands. Its 250 centers
are located off interstate highway exits
and offer diesel and gasoline fueling
services, more than 500 full- and quickservice restaurants, 24-hour convenience
stores, heavy truck maintenance services,
RoadSquad Connect emergency roadside
service, and Reserve-It truck parking
reservations.
TravelCenters also operates gasoline/
convenience stores in Kentucky and
Tennessee under the Minit Mart brand
name. 
Human Resources
The 2013 Convenience Store Human
Resources Study
N
early 100 convenience store chains
representing more than 12,000 stores
offered insights on employee salaries,
hiring trends and labor costs.
By Mel Kleiman, President, Humetrics.
In order to support convenience store
operators as they plan and forecast
their human resources investments
over the next 12 months, Convenience
Store Decisions and Humetrics have
collaborated on our fifth annual Human
Resources survey.
The following results, based on
respondents’ recent experiences and
expectations, will help provide the
industry comprehensive benchmarks
and insights on key areas of human
resources, such as employee salaries,
operating expenditures, hiring trends
and the impact technology is having on
employee training. This year, we will once
again look at some of this year’s results
versus the forecasts respondents made
last year.
Demographics
This year’s survey asked 25 questions
relating to human resource issues.
Responses were collected from midFebruary through early March 2013.
Respondents’ employers ranged in size
anywhere from 25 or fewer employees
(20%) with less than $1 million in annual
revenues (9.1%) up to more than 500
employees (24.4%, up from 15.9% in
2012) and more than $500 million in
annual revenues (11.4%, about the same
as last year). This year, as last, the bulk
of the respondents were in the 101–500
employee range (33.3%) and the $1
million-$10 million annual revenues
category (31.8%).
When we look at the respondents by
year, 15.8% are anticipating a decrease.
Again, like last year, employee turnover
is still at historically low levels for the
industry. With the exception of part-time
employees, most respondents said
the majority of employee turnover still
ranges from 0-7% across the board.
Part-time employees, however, bumped
up dramatically (47.1%) from the 0-7%
category last year to the 50–150% ranges
in 2012.
When we look at full-time employees,
23.7% did report turnover at what used to
be typical rates of between 50-150% (up
from a low of 13.7% last year).
Only 10.6% of participants expect
to devote more time and money to
employee recruiting activities this year
while most (48.9%) said recruiting
activities are expected to stay at about
the same levels this year as last.
When we look at the recruiting methods
job title, we find that 31.7% are corporate
used to attract both hourly and salaried
human resources professionals, about
employees, the major changes from last
10% are district managers, 7.3% unit
year’s results are that local newspapers
level managers, and 51.2% comprise
were added back into the mix for hourlies
“other corporate personnel.”
and Internet job boards went to the head
of the list for salaried workers.
Employee Screening and Staffing
While still not widely employed, social
As we found last year, when it comes
media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.)
to staffing and training activities, most of
these responsibilities fall on the shoulders are being used by 28% of respondents
now, up from only 2% in 2012. Craigslist
of store managers and district managers
usage for hourlies increased a bit from
with the exception of drug testing, which
21% in 2011 to 25% in 2012, but its
is most often handled by corporate
effectiveness rating fell from fourth place
personnel or a third-party vendor.
in 2011 to seventh last year.
While only 18.5% of last year’s
When asked about the tools employers
respondents expected to increase staffing
in 2012, 27.1% of this year’s respondents use to screen in the best job applicants,
responses show that more employers are
actually did. This year, the majority
using more screening tools. Those most
(59.3%) reported staffing levels stayed
widely in use are:
about the same in 2012 and 49.1%
• Criminal background records checks.
expect this will not change much in 2013.
• In-house or outside service reference/
While 35.1% do expect to add to staff this
12
Human Resources
background checks.
• Third-party drug testing.
Each successive year, we also find
more participants report the use of
pre-employment testing for physical
capacities, IQ, skills, attitudes, personality
traits and other areas related to job
function. In 2011, 71% were using at
least one of these tools, while usage
is universal (100%) among this year’s
respondents. Only 5% are currently
checking social media sites, but another
5% plan to add these checks into their
mix this year.
from $7.25-$12 with an average of $8.61
(versus $8.57 in 2012).
When asked: “Which statement best
describes your current pay policies for
hourly employees and managers?” the
results for salaried employees were
evenly split (at 25.5%) between: “We
have a pay-for-performance program and
give raises based on productivity” and
“selective raises” and “across-the-board
raises of 1-3%.”
For hourly employees, the results were
almost evenly split between “across-theboard raises of 1-3%” (32.8%), “pay for
performance” (24.1%), and “selective
Training
raises” (27.6%).
Most survey participants (67%) reported
Five percent of survey respondents
that training programs stayed about the
reported a wage freeze for hourly
same in 2012 and over half (57%) expect employees and 11% for salaried
them to stay about the same in 2013.
employees.
Only one respondent anticipates training
Most respondents expect their
cutbacks and, of those who will increase
policies to stay the same in 2013 with
their investment in training (about 40%),
the exception of a 10% increase in
the greatest emphasis is again on
the number of those using “pay-forcustomer service skills (70%), followed
performance” criteria.
by foodservice safety/sanitation (57%),
The following table summarizes the
teamwork, and safety, both at 45%.
benefits now offered by the reporting
When asked about the addition of
group as compared to the respondents in
any new training technologies, 22%
2011:
responded affirmatively and the tools
It’s interesting to note that while profit
cited include: e-Learning, Webinars,
sharing showed one of the biggest
learning management systems
decreases last year, this year it posted
(LMS), smartphones, iPad, personal
the largest increase although it should be
computers, digital at store level, industry
kept in mind that the same employers or
professionals, age-sensitive sales,
people did not necessarily complete the
environmental, online ATS and onsurvey each year.
boarding programs.
Over 80% expect benefits to stay about
the same in 2013, while 10% expect they
Labor Costs
will increase and 5.5% think they will be
Store managers’ salaries ranged
decreased. At the time of this survey,
from $32,000-$66,000 annually with an
much of the industry seems to be taking
average of $36,500 (slightly lower than
a wait-and-see approach as to how
last year’s $38,711). Assistant managers’ Obamacare will impact healthcare costs
salaries ranged from $18,000 (up from
and wellness programs. This is one area
$12,000) to $41,000 per year with an
the will be benchmarked closely with next
average of $26,500 (up from $24,000).
year’s survey.
The hourly rate for a full-time employee
ranged from $7.25-$14.10 per hour with
Technology Trends
an average of $9.35, up slightly from
As for new technologies to manage
$9.26. Part-time, hourly wages ranged
labor costs and improve the hiring
13
process in 2013, 26% will add a
scheduling system, 13% will implement
a new hiring and training system, while
30% don’t plan any additions.
Approximately 65% said both
employee-related lawsuits and worker’s
compensation claims “were about the
same” in 2012 and expect them to stay at
about the same levels in 2013.
When asked: “How was business in
2012 and how do you think 2013 will
compare in each of the three categories
listed below?” a preponderance think
2013 looks promising:
While the industry faces a slew of
challenges in 2013, such as preparing
for the overhaul in healthcare and the
impact this will have on full- and part-time
employees, convenience store companies
remain optimistic that their business
is growing, the industry’s popularity is
expanding and overall wellbeing of the
U.S. economy is improving.
If these trends continue, c-store
retailers have every reason to be
optimistic heading into 2014.
Train to Retain
Do you ever wonder why no one ever
trains us for life’s most important roles?
Did you get any training in what it takes
to be a parent? A manager? A business
owner? Probably not.
In our professional lives, this is
unfortunate because employee exit
interview surveys tell us the main reason
outstanding employees quit is because
Human Resources
they think they aren’t well managed. In
other words, they joined the company, but
leave the manager.
When left to our own devices, most
of us tend to deliver training in the way
we prefer to receive it. This creates
problems because different people have
different learning styles. Some learn best
by reading written instructions; some by
hearing or seeing the task performed
and others learn by doing it themselves.
Managers who don’t allow for each of
these learning styles create unnecessary
frustration for the trainee as well as
themselves and are often perceived as
bad teachers. The best way to train—
and keep good people on board—is to
incorporate all methods of instruction so
they naturally reinforce each other.
You Get What You Expect
The three keys to an overall training
philosophy are to:
1. Set Clear Expectations. Employees
perform better if they know exactly
what you want them to do.
This includes communicating the
consequences. Let employees know
the impact it will have on the
organization or its customers if they
do it right, do it wrong, or don’t do it
at all.
2. Provide Necessary Skills. Once they
know what you want them to do and
why, they need to know how to do it.
3. Remove Obstacles. Think about
the task at hand and ask yourself,
“What might prevent a person from
succeeding?” Faulty or wrong
equipment, cramped or crowded
working conditions, can all put
employees in a position to fail.
While you have a picture of how
the task should be done in your head,
nobody else, least of all your new hire,
can read your mind. Communicate your
expectations every chance you get. Ask
trainees to read the written instructions
and ask them why they think it should
be done that way or if they have any
ideas about how it might be done better.
Regularly review expectations like
reliability, dependability and honesty
in staff meetings. If your policy manual
includes a statement about employee
standards or expectations, have everyone
reread and initial a copy at once every
three months. 
Featuring
We take pride in offering our GHRA customers
a great selection of products to meet your market needs
Please call us today (323) 786-7865 - this is a local call.
14
Industry News
Are You Keeping Up With Change?
By Terry McKenna |Convenience Store Coaches & Employee Performance Strategies Inc
N
ever before have so many things
been changing so rapidly. The
convenience store industry is a good
example. Technology is changing at lightspeed, and new competitors are entering
the competitive landscape like never
before.
The most important question for any
company is this: Are we changing as fast
as the world around us?
The only thing that can be safely
predicted is that sometime soon your
business will be challenged to change
in ways for which it has no precedent.
Your company will either adapt or falter.
Capacity to adapt and adapt quickly is
extremely important these days, and
therein lays the problem: Most companies
were never built to be adaptable.
Adaptability requires a willingness
to occasionally abandon established
routines and norms, and in most
companies there are precious few
incentives to do so. That’s why change
tends to come in only two varieties:
the trivial and the traumatic. If you find
yourself behind the change curve,
chances are you’re already dead in the
water; your obituary just hasn’t been
written yet!
Declining Fuel & Tobacco Dollars
The biggest issue facing convenience
store operators today is the decline in fuel
and tobacco sales and margin.
What’s your plan to replace this decline
in gross profit dollars? If you’re waiting for
a miraculous turnaround, you’re going to
have a long wait. Welcome to your new
reality.
If you believe foodservice is the answer,
but you’ve yet to jump into foodservice
with both feet and establish yourself, then
the process will take too long before you
can turn the tide and replace current lost
15
gross profit dollars. That’s not to suggest
you should ignore foodservice -- certainly
not. Foodservice not only offers great
margins (upward of 50 percent), but more
importantly, it’s become a price of entry;
the ante to get into the game. If you’re
not into foodservice, then you’re at a
competitive disadvantage.
Quick-Strike Strategy
To help offset declining fuel and
tobacco gross profit dollars, here’s a
quick four-point strategy that you can
immediately implement:
• OTP: Other tobacco products (OTP),
such as electronic cigarettes and vapors,
are rapidly growing both in consumer
acceptance and sales. These products
have solid gross profit margins (GPM). If
you don’t have an OTP strategy in terms
of pricing, merchandising and promotion,
now is the time to develop one.
• Foodservice margins: If you
currently have a foodservice program
(including fountain and coffee programs),
make sure you’re getting a good GPM.
The best companies can generate a solid
50 percent to 55 percent GPM. Keep in
mind, though, the companies that can
generate the best GPMs in foodservice
offer a great program. Trying to grab
higher GPMs on a weak foodservice
offering is foolish. If you feel you do have
a solid foodservice program, then don’t
give it away -- get your margin. After all,
you have to get margin somewhere and
foodservice is the best place to get it.
• Buy right: Sit down with your
suppliers and make sure you’re buying
right: product, cups, lids, straws, napkins
-- everything. This is step No. 1 to
ensuring higher GPMs.
• Expense analysis: Without looking
at your P&L, I’m confident there’s fat
that can be trimmed. Review on a lineby-line basis every operating cost you’re
incurring. Each expense should be
justified. The first place to look is your
operating supplies. Buying in bulk to
obtain a quantity discount is fine, provided
of course these supplies aren’t sitting in
inventory for months on end.
Change can be friend or foe; you
decide. The market isn’t going to hand
you anything. You’re going to have to
roll up your sleeves, make the required
changes, maintain a laser-like focus on
the end game and excel at execution. Do
that and you’ll be just fine. 
Warehouse News
Warehouse
Industry News
Updates
Bob Sliger | General Manager
P
rogress continues! A lot of work has
been done in the past several weeks
to complete the architectural details of
the project and finalize the construction
bid process. The city permitting has been
challenging but we fully anticipate all
permits to be approved soon and clear
the way for construction. Centerpoint will
begin the necessary work to prepare the
site for the additional electricity needs by
removing some overhead power lines and
replacing them with some underground
lines. Stay tuned for more updates on the
construction progress in next months InAction magazine!
2014-15 HOUSTON TEXANS SCHEDULE
WK
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DATE
SEP 7
SEP 14
SEP 21
SEP 28
OCT 5
OCT 9
OCT 20
OCT 26
NOV 2
BYE
NOV 16
NOV 23
NOV 30
DEC 7
DEC 14
DEC 21
DEC 28
TIME
12:00 PM CDT
3:25 PM CDT
12:00 PM CDT
12:00 PM CDT
12:00 PM CDT
7:25 PM CDT
7:30 PM CDT
12:00 PM CDT
12:00 PM CST
OPPONENT
REDSKINS
AT RAIDERS
AT GIANTS
BILLS
AT COWBOYS
COLTS
AT STEELERS
AT TITANS
EAGLES
RESULT
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12:00 PM CST
12:00 PM CST
12:00 PM CST
12:00 PM CST
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12:00 PM CST
AT BROWNS
BENGALS
TITANS
AT JAGUARS
AT COLTS
RAVENS
JAGUARS
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templatetrove.com
WE’RE ONLINE
WWW.GHRAONLINE.COM
All GHRA
announcements and
publications will be
posted online.
Members are
encouraged to visit
the GHRA website on a
regular basis for up to
date information and
latest publications.
GHRA ONLINE
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GHRA members.
Members can now
list businesses or
equipment for sale on
the GHRA Website!
16
New Member Introductions
welcome
MEMBERS
On behalf of the board of directors and staff at GHRA,
please welcome our newest members as of June 2014:
IMRAN K. ALI
Owner of GHRA Location #3529
College Food Store • Houston, TX
SIRAJUDDIN DOSANI
Owner Of GHRA Location #3538
Best Handi Plus #26 • Houston, TX
ZULFIKARALI N. MAKNOJIA
Owner of GHRA Location #3543
Fuel Maxx #8 • Houston, TX
AZIZ K. MOMIN
Owner of GHRA Location #3530
Welcome Market • Fresno, TX
SIRAJUDDIN DOSANI
Owner of GHRA Location #3539
Best Handi Plus #14 • Houston, TX
PIYAR A. SADRUDIN
Owner of GHRA Location #3544
EZ Spot • Richmond, TX
BARKATALI B. BADARPURA
Owner of GHRA Location #3531
El Rincon Supermarket • Houston, TX
SIRAJUDDIN DOSANI
Owner of GHRA Location #3540
Best Handi Plus #17 • Houston, TX
RAHIM H. MOMIN
Owner of GHRA Location #3545
Oasis Angleton • Angleton, TX
BARKAT ALI
Owner of GHRA Location #3532
Hamner Country Store • Waller, TX
RAJABALI H. PANJWANI
Owner of GHRA Location #3541
Best Handi Plus #27 • Houston, TX
AMIN S. NATHANI
Owner of GHRA Location #3546
1 Stop #3 • Houston, TX
BARKAT S. MAREDIA
Owner of GHRA Location #3533
Shell Express Mart • Navasota, TX
MUSTAKALI K. MAKNOJIYA
Owner of GHRA Location #3542
Chevron Food Mart • Houston, TX
IMRAN ALI
Owner of GHRA Location #3547
Hollister Food Mart • Houston, TX
RIZWANA R. DAREDIA
Owner of GHRA Location #3534
Dixie Food Store • Houston, TX
ALLAUDDIN N. MOMIN
Owner of GHRA Location #3535
King Food Store • Houston, TX
ROZINA T. ALI
Owner of GHRA Location #3536
S & N Food Store • Houston, TX
MOHAMMED T. RAJPOOT
Owner of GHRA Location #3537
24 Seven #14 • Houston, TX
17