Survey: One in Nine Americans Worked at C-store

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — There is a good chance you or someone you know has a convenience-store stint on their resume, according to NACS, the Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing.

A new consumer survey conducted by the association found that one in nine American adults has worked in a c-store, and they said it gave them valuable experience in how to work with people, how to manage processes and how to run a business.

Overall, 11 percent of adult Americans indicated they have worked at a convenience store or gas station and 3 percent of all Americans said it was their first job.

Those who have worked at convenience stores found the experience to be valuable: 87 percent said they learned a lot about how to work with people, 85 percent said the experience they gained was valuable, 82 percent said they learned a lot about the world of work and 80 percent said they learned how businesses are run.

Those who said their first job was at a c-store were even more positive about the experience: 96 percent said the work experience was valuable and 95 percent said they learned a lot about the world of work, according to the survey.

In addition, the business value of the experience was cited by those who held a convenience store job in college: 88 percent said they learned a lot about how businesses are run and 89 percent said the job offered a flexible work schedule that allowed them to schedule work around other things in life.

According to NACS, adult Americans who have never worked in a convenience store were equally positive about the potential opportunities available to c-store employees.

Overall, 86 percent of Americans who have never worked in the industry said convenience stores offer good first jobs for those looking to enter the industry; 86 percent also said convenience stores are great summer jobs for high school and college students.

Survey participants also see jobs as a potential path toward managing or owning a small business; more than two of three non-convenience store employees (68 percent) agreed that it's common for workers who work hard to become managers or eventually own their own businesses.

"Convenience stores conduct more than 160 million customer transactions a day and fuel 80 percent of the vehicles on the roads today. None of this would be possible without the 2.2 million employees that serve half of America on a daily basis. These jobs also provide opportunities — whether learning valuable business experience as you are earning an income, or to eventually grow your own small business," said NACS President and CEO Henry Armour.

Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates LLC conducted the nationwide survey of 1,111 consumers.