Leadership Day

Mark your calendars. The date is Nov. 6, 2019. The place is Chicago. The events on that day comprise what can only be described as Leadership Day in the convenience store industry.

Past, present and future leaders of the convenience store industry will be featured and honored next month at Convenience Store News’ 33rd annual Hall of Fame dinner and at the second-annual CSNews Future Leaders in Convenience Summit.

Leadership Day will begin in the late morning with a workshop and awards program for talented young business people to hone their leadership skills, while also recognizing their achievements as emerging leaders in the c-store industry. The program will feature great discussions and talks around what makes a great leader, and what kinds of challenges aspiring leaders need to overcome. Our guest speakers will include Matt Domingo of RAI Trade Marketing Services, Gus Olympidis of Family Express, Derek Gaskins of Yesway, and Danielle Mattiussi of Maverik.

This year’s class of 15 young executives selected as Future Leaders in Convenience include a diverse selection of up-and-comers, as well as seasoned executives from both large and medium-sized retailers. Their job responsibilities run the gamut, from a company president to category managers, financial managers and fuels, marketing and human resources experts.

The day’s leadership theme will continue in the evening when we induct the newest retailer and supplier members of the CSNews Hall of Fame, and recognize the accomplishments of our 2019 CSNews Retailer Executive of the Year.

Last year’s Hall of Fame retailer inductee, Jay Ricker, will induct his longtime friend and colleague Olympidis into the retailer wing of the Hall of Fame, while last year’s supplier honoree Rick Brindle of Mondelēz International will welcome Scott Hill of Jack Link’s Protein Snacks into the supplier wing of the Hall of Fame. Brian Hannasch, president and CEO of Alimentation Couche-Tard, will be celebrated as the Retailer Executive of the Year.

An extra-special highlight of the evening will be recognition of the 50 Most Influential People in Convenience Store History. CSNews marked its 50th anniversary in July with a special commemorative issue that honored the 50 people who have had the greatest influence on the growth and development of this industry. Many of those individuals will be on hand to help us celebrate a truly noteworthy Leadership Day in the convenience store industry.

I hope you plan to be a part of this educational and festive day.