Parker’s Honored by Inc. 500/5000

AACS congratulates Parkers [below] and is very pleased that Greg Parker will be one of the presenters at our November ‘Convenience Leaders Summit’ CSD Staff Aug 21, 2012 “This honor further validates what our customers tell us every day—that we deliver the ultimate in convenience store products and services at a fair price,” says Parker’s CEO. Parker’s, a convenience store chain with 27 retail locations throughout southeast Georgia and coastal South Carolina, has ranked No. 3006 on the annual Inc. 500/5000 Fastest Growing Companies list. “We’re grateful to our customers for making this honor possible,” said Parker’s president and CEO Greg Parker. “Their loyalty has helped make us one of the nation’s fastest-growing companies. This honor further validates what our customers tell us every day—that we deliver the ultimate in convenience store products and services at a fair price.” The 2012 Inc. 500/5000 list, which will officially be unveiled in…

Read More

Price of Melbourne coffees have jumped the biggest in the nation

Wes Hosking August 24, 2012 Herald Sun MELBOURNE caffeine cravers are being roasted with the biggest price rise for takeaway coffee in Australia. But a daily cup still sets drinkers back less than most capital cities. Over the past year, the average price of a takeaway cappuccino in Melbourne shot up 18c to $3.36. Costs are hardest to swallow in Perth, where cafes charge an average $3.87. Sydney is home to the cheapest caffeine kick at $3.28 despite a 17c increase. Gilkatho managing director Wayne Fowler, whose coffee machine retail company surveyed prices at more than 900 cafes nationwide, said wages and rental costs had the biggest effect on price. “There is little connection between the cost of coffee, which is actually decreasing globally, and the cost of a takeaway coffee in Australia,” Mr Fowler said. Di Bella Coffee managing director Phillip Di Bella said it cost about $1 for…

Read More

AACS supports penalty rate amendments to promote jobs

With Independent Senator Nick Xenophon proposing to amend workplace laws covering double time weekend wages, a situation he says is crippling small businesses, the Australasian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS) has offered its support to the amendments to maintain the viability of its members’ businesses and, ultimately, create and sustain opportunities for employees in the sector. Read the Full Article

Read More

The click and collect expansion

Tim Barlass August 19, 2012 The Age The growth in online fashion sales might be grabbing all the headlines but another sector has been quietly undergoing a similar revolution. Coles is road-testing a new way for customers to buy and pick up their groceries. Shoppers in Melbourne order online and then collect the items from secure refrigerated storage at a time convenient to them between 3pm and midnight. Now, there are plans to trial the system in Sydney, possibly this year. The general manager for online at Coles, Keith Louie, said that its internet sales had grown five-fold over the past four years and predicted ”strong double-digit” growth in online food shopping over the next three years. The online service has changed dramatically from five years ago, Mr Louie said, when distribution in Sydney and Melbourne was conducted from a single centre in each city with a fleet of 10…

Read More

iPads to save Woolies millions

Chris Griffith August 21, 2012 The Australian WOOLWORTHS, whose normal role is feeding its supermarket customers, last week fed its 890 store managers a technology diet. It gave them each an iPad. The big iPad rollout took place at the end of Woolworths’ national conference in Sydney and was greeted with excitement and cheers. “You should have seen the reaction of our store managers when we announced they would get an iPad,” said Tjeerd Jegen, Woolworths managing director of Australian supermarkets and petrol. “They were thrilled. They started shouting and yelling and when we told them (about) the apps on their iPads, they couldn’t believe it.” Woolworths says that from this week, its store managers will cease spending time in backroom offices using desktops to decipher instructions from head office and manage stock levels. Instead, they will be visible in stores with their iPads in hand. Their duties will include…

Read More