Minnesota & Missouri C-stores Embrace Play at the Pump

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Lottery ticket sales at the pump have been impressive in both Missouri and Minnesota, where convenience store retailers have embraced Play At The Pump.

Play At The Pump is Gilbarco Veeder-Root and partner Linq3’s technology solution that enables consumers to buy lottery tickets directly from the gas pump. It is a simple software upgrade to Gilbarco’s Passport point-of-sale (POS), the company said.   

Participating retailers have added a new source of revenue via causal lottery players and have also seen indoor lottery sales increase more than 4 percent by advertising jackpot levels at the pump, according to Gilbarco.

One retailer seeing an excellent return on investment is Springfield-based Rapid Roberts Inc., a 20-unit convenience store chain.

“We are excited about the additional lottery ticket sales that Play At The Pump brings to our sites,” said Todd Wilson, president of Rapid Roberts. “Gilbarco and Linq3 have taken forecourt innovation to the next level with Play At The Pump, giving us the ability to improve our consumers’ experience and make our sites a more attractive destination.”

Play At The Pump allows consumers to play Mega Millions, Powerball and a state lottery jackpot game via the fuel dispenser, using a payment card. Winnings of up to $599 can be deposited directly back onto the same card. To keep track of lottery numbers selected, customers can have this information texted directly to their mobile phones and receive alerts when they have won a prize.

There are no payment card fees on the lottery portion of the transaction. Linq3 covers this expense.

“We are thrilled to see retailers such as Rapid Roberts taking a proactive approach, adopting new technology on their forecourt,” said Travis Bouck, vice president of marketing for Gilbarco Veeder-Root. “Play At The Pump is a great example of a forward-thinking retailer growing their sales and enhancing their brand through our Passport POS system.”

More than 40 locations in the Springfield area alone offer Play At The Pump, with the service available at SIGNAL Food Stores and Fast-N-Friendly stores in addition to Rapid Roberts.

Play At The Pump is also off and running with great success in Minnesota, reported Gilbarco. California and North Carolina are set to pilot their own lottery offerings at the pump by the end of this year.