Living With & Without Technology

I will be on vacation next week, a trip we have been looking forward to for several years. It will be my first trip to Europe in more than 20 years. In fact, the last time I took a trip across the pond was during the 2000 presidential election. My mother and I watched the election results pour in while packing in our hotel room in Ireland. The next morning, we couldn't believe we were boarding a plane back to New York without knowing who won. Surely, we would have a president-elect by the time we landed. Well, we all know how that worked out.

Hanging chad controversy aside, it's hard to fathom now that while in flight, we had to wait roughly seven hours to get information about the election — or about anything, quite frankly. Between cellphones, tablets and 24-hour news media, access to information is all around us today.

While I will do my best to leave the world behind and enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime trip, I am curious to see the role technology plays in European retail. Just from covering Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.'s earnings calls, I am betting that our European counterparts are far ahead of us when it comes to implementing technology solutions.

There is a reason Couche-Tard looks to its Circle K stores in Norway as an innovation lab. From electric vehicle charging to pay-by-plate technology to mobile subscription services, the Circle K brand stands out as a tech leader in Europe. The banner has even been recognized as the NACS European Convenience Retail Technology Award winner in 2023 and 2021.

If anyone has any must-see sights along the Danube River, let me know. But let me know before Saturday because once we leave Newark Liberty International Airport for Germany, I'm going to be living without technology.