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FRONT & CENTER

News about NYACS Member Retailers and Suppliers
February 2010

SONBYRNE SALES:  Al Smith is the new General Manager of Syracuse-based Sonbyrne Sales, which operates 51 Byrne Dairy stores in Central and Western New York. He was previously Senior Vice President of Operations for the 250-unit Turkey Hill Minit Markets chain based in Lancaster PA. A native of Baltimore MD, Al has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Millersville University. He and his wife Rachel have five daughters and reside in Onondaga Hill.
  

SWISHER INTERNATIONAL INC.:  Terry Pier, left, Northeast Zone Manager for Swisher International Inc. and Secretary of the NYACS Associate Board, was named Swisher’s “Zone Manager of the Year” at the company’s recent national sales meeting in Hammock Bay, Florida. His prize: Use of the Mercedes ML 350 behind him to use as a company car for a year!

McLANE COMPANY:  McLane Foodservice named Scott Siers as Vice President of Business Development. He has 23 years of experience in sales development and marketing in the food service industry, the last seven with PepsiCo, where he held key roles in brand positioning, business development and general management.

CONWOOD COMPANY:  Effective January 1, Conwood changed its name to American Snuff Company LLC, and continues to focus on producing quality smokeless tobacco products.

GULF OIL LP:  Gulf Oil, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cumberland Farms Inc., announced plans to expand nationwide by acquiring all rights, title and interest to the Gulf brand in the United States. For the last 20 years, Gulf-branded gasoline has only been available in the Northeast through a licensing agreement between Gulf Oil's parent company and Chevron USA Inc. Gulf Oil now controls the right to market the brand throughout the U.S. and its territories.

7-ELEVEN INC.:  7-Eleven announced plans to open 100 stores in Manhattan within the next five years, either by executing new leases or through its business conversion program. Most of the locations will be concentrated below 125th Street on the West Side and 96th on the East Side. Meanwhile, President & CEO Joe DePinto is being featured on an episode of the new CBS reality show, “Undercover Boss.”

LORILLARD TOBACCO CO.:   The firm’s Syracuse Region Office has moved to 125 West Seneca Street, Manlius NY 13104. The phone number is 315-682-1068 and the fax is 315-682-1069. Email addresses are unchanged.

NEW YORK LOTTERY:  New instant games launched this month were the $5 “Harley Davidson,” the $5 “Five Hundred Dollar Cash Bonus,” and the $2 “Find the 8’s.” Coming in March are the $1 “Lucky 3’s,” the $2 games “Copa Cash, “Loose Change Doubler,” and “10x Cash Payout,” and the $5 “One Million Bucks,” “Big Money,” and “Mother’s Day 2010” games.

CHESTNUT PETROLEUM DISTRIBUTOR:  The New Paltz-based company held its first annual Dealer Family Appreciation Day and Incentive Awards Picnic September 27 at Hammonasset Beach State Park in Connecticut with 50 dealers, guests, employees, and friends attending. John Demeo of the Saw Mill River Road, Millwood NY location was one of three Shell-branded dealers honored as best-in-class operators for their commitment to customer satisfaction and business growth. CPD employees MJ Tenney and Mike Calabrese were recognized for organizing the event. Oyon Amin, son of Retail Accounting Manager Ruhul Amin, won a new bicycle. Among suppliers helping to host the event was Pepsi Bottling Group.

  

LDD CORPORATION:   The chain of five Getty Mart locations promoted Tina Cassidy to General Manager, succeeding Ben Zimmerman, who moved to Nevada. She has been with the company for six years and most recently managed the Palmyra store.

 
DANDY MINI MARTS:  Dandy has opened a state-of-the-art, 5,200-square-foot store at 104 Wygant Road in Horseheads, Chemung County. Open 24 hours a day, the newly constructed store will be the chain’s 25th New York location and 60th overall. It has a beer cave and an extensive food service offering, including a Chinese wok, New York-style bagels, subs, pizza, chicken wings, coffee, cappuccino, and other fresh foods. The Sunoco-branded fuel offering consists of five gas and five diesel pumps.

WILSON FARMS INC./REID PETROLEUM CORP.:  The companies jointly launched Western New York's second E85 fuel station, located at the Wilson Farms store at 95 South Transit Road in Lockport. They had launched the first one exactly one year earlier in North Tonawanda.

  

QUICK CHEK CORP.:  The chain opened its newest store at Route 17-M and County Route 108 in Middletown, Orange County, on September 22. It donated 25 cents for every sub, sandwich and wrap sold during its first 30 days of operation to the Middletown Volunteer Fire Department. Managed by Store Leader Anthony Cantillo, the location includes a coffee bar, sub shop, soup bar, bakery items made fresh daily, no-fee ATM center, and 20 fueling stations.

  

McCULLAGH COFFEE CO.:  The Buffalo-based company announced an agreement with NOCO Energy Corp. to supply coffee for 29 NOCO Express Shops in Western New York. The coffee will be sold under the Nickel City Roast brand name.

  

THE HERSHEY CO.:  The firm granted HP Hood LLC a license to manufacture, sell and distribute extended-shelf-life Hershey flavored milks and milkshakes nationwide. Hood will partner with Hershey to launch a line of 12 oz. single-serve Hershey-branded products – including Reduced Fat Chocolate Milk, Chocolate Milkshake, and Cookies n’ Cream Milkshake – to markets across the U.S. beginning in January 2010.

  

NICE N EASY GROCERY SHOPPES:  The chain opened its newest store September 4 in Clay, Onondaga County, featuring an Easy Street Eatery, Nice N Easy gasoline, beer cave and produce section. The store has an open ceiling in the retail area, exposing steel trusses, heating and AC ducts, conduits and other fixtures. It has LED lighting inside and out, including canopy, yard and building lights, interior store, cooler and storage areas. Twenty-year NNE veteran Diane Conger is Store Director, Tracy Lawton is Foodservice Director, and Warren Bauder is Assistant Manager. (PHOTO: Nice N Easy President and CEO John MacDougall, center, is joined by Executive VP Peter Tamburro, left, and Senior Executive VP Fran Duskiewicz as they accept the "Chain of the Year" award from Convenience Store Decisions magazine during ceremony at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas.)

  

REID STORES INC.:  The Brockport-based chain opened a new Crosby’s convenience store at 14383 Ridge Road in Albion, Orleans County. The Sunoco-branded location was formerly JP’s Farm Market II. It features a Crosby’s Corner Café with an expansive eat-in and take-out menu, including fresh-baked pizza by the slice or whole, calzones, chicken, made-to-order hot or cold subs, fresh baked goods, and pre-made sandwiches and salads. In addition, its “Corner Café Connect” seating area offers free Wi-Fi access. Reid Stores now has 31 locations in New York State.

  

KNC HOLDINGS INC.:  The Latham-based convenience store operator is opened its first free-standing Papa John's pizza outlet October 1st on Route 7 in Troy. KNC, which has a Papa John's inside its Airport Mobil C-store on Route 7 in Latham, acquired an exclusive franchise to open as many as 12 free-standing Papa John's in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady and Saratoga counties.

  

 

PEPSI BOTTLING GROUP:  PepsiCo announced merger agreements with its two largest anchor bottlers, Pepsi Bottling Group Inc. and PepsiAmericas Inc., under which PepsiCo will acquire all outstanding shares of their common stock it does not already own. “While the existing model has served the system very well, it is clear that the changing dynamics of the North American liquid refreshment beverage business demand that we create a more flexible, efficient and competitive system that can drive growth across the full range of PepsiCo beverage brands,” said PepsiCo Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Indra Nooyi. “The fully integrated beverage business will enable us to bring innovative products and packages to market faster, streamline our manufacturing and distribution systems and react more quickly to changes in the marketplace, much like we do with our food business.

  

RL VALLEE:  In July, the St. Albans, Vermont-based operator of Maplefields convenience stores acquired four former Chase Mobil locations in Clinton and Franklin counties, increasing their store count in New York’s North Country to seven. The new Maplefields sites – all branded Mobil and supplied by Dowlings Inc. – are in Dannemora, Redford, Plattsburgh, and Peru.

COUNTRY CONVENIENCE FOOD STORES: Joining in the 30th anniversary of Country Convenience were, from left, Store Manager Toni Painter; owner Patty Wiley; Nick Wiley, grandson of the late founder Alan Wiley; and Michele Moran, who has been with the Goshen-based chain for 25 years.

MANLEY’S MIGHTY MARTS:  August Kutchinski, formerly with Giant Supermarkets, is the new President of the Binghamton-based chain, succeeding Jack Brayton, who remains General Manager of parent company Manley Associates.


HEINEKEN USA:  Dolf van den Brink, formerly Commercial Director and Deputy General Manager of Bralima, the brewer’s operating company in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was named the new President and CEO of Heineken USA.

  

Do you have an item for the "Front & Center" roundup of member news? A new or remodeled store? A new addition or promotion in your management team? Honors or awards for your company? We're proud of the growth and accomplishments of NYACS retail and supplier members, and we want to share the positive news with the rest of the membership. Don't be shy! E-mail your "Front & Center" news item to jim@nyacs.org or fax to 518-432-7400.

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