“If we can’t be the best at it, then we take our marbles and go home.” Chet Cadieux’s words to retailers last October both tickled and taunted, with many in that NACS Show general session all too familiar with QuikTrip’s build-and- dominate M.O. After declawing his com- ment with a playful pout, the president and CEO of one of the industry’s leading game-changers dropped another loaded tidbit—its enhanced take on foodservice: Be the best at it.

BY ANGEL ABCEDE & LINDA ABU-SHALBACK ZID [email protected], [email protected]

the NEW DOMINANCE*

36 CSP February 2010 *Store count still matters, though.

February 2010 CSP 37 « Defining the New Dominance

Dominance is a uch domination strategies are as best to serve tomorrow’s consumer. mindset, a motivational pervasive in convenience retail As market forces reshape the mean- tool and part of a Stoday as when the majors began ing of dominance, five competitive cur- cultural DNA. building gas stations on every corner 50 rents are gaining momentum: years ago. But at the dawn of the 2010s, Renewed Swarming. Despite a trend market dominance as defined by sheer in the past two decades to build fewer Store count still matters, store count has broken into a rain of but higher-volume sites, growing store but dominance goes complex shards, reflecting everything count for giants such as -based beyond brick and from selling the most of a category cross- 7-Eleven Inc. remains a core strategy, mortar. channel to maximizing share of wallet. as evidenced by commitments to “It’s not all about [traditional] mar- expand anew in targeted markets. ket dominance in our industry,” says Share of Wallet. Bigger is the new With scale comes Alain Bouchard, CEO of Laval, Que- norm with chains such as Corpus efficiency. bec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard Christi, -based Susser Holdings Inc., one of the continent’s most prolific Corp. building fewer but larger stores Differentiation is key. c-store consolidators. “It’s a fragmented to take greater share of the hypothetical [channel]. Even when you have good “convenience dollar.”

positioning in a market, there’s always Food Fight. The struggle to define « a large number of competitors, includ- foodservice within the convenience Compete With ing those from other channels.” space, especially with confident chains the Big Boys Ultimately, Bouchard, the leader of such as Tulsa, Okla.-based QuikTrip ’s parent company, says the game committing to the fight, will play out Newcomers need to is more about critical mass and “posi- in the coming months. The category match or exceed tioning yourself in the market where you may also illustrate the industry’s competitive levels of the can influence the world of convenience.” power to persevere over the food- dominant player. It’s an influence not exclusive to big drug-mass collective. chains. A retailer with 20 stores can dom- Jobber Reign. As local distributors inate a mid-sized town and have an capitalize on major-oil divestments and Strive for brands to equally influential competitor with only take over large metro markets, their achieve critical mass. 10. Then there are the single-store oper- homegrown tactics may tip the scales, ators who exert their might both as a col- but only if the transition is successful. Land Grab. Know where you stand lective and individually corner by corner. The economic slump has, “Market dominance to us is providing in many areas, made land, construction in your markets. a service, providing an experience, pro- and material costs cheaper, potentially viding a product,” says Sam Odeh, who pushing a surge of both new builds and Keep a constant pulse heads the three-store Power Mart Corp. acquisitions. Big chains and independ- on the customer. in Oak Brook, Ill., and recently opened ents alike may benefit, but to what extent a 5,000-square-foot site. “[It’s about] pro- rests largely on the availability of credit. viding a differentiation that we carefully What unifies all the evolving trends Small can mean flexibile. study in the [areas where we build].” and strategies is the idea of dominance Savvy retailers such as Odeh, as a mindset. Prepare to tighten belts Cadieux and Bouchard are redefining “We’re not out [for] world con- in markets where what it means to be No. 1, forcing quest,” says QuikTrip spokesman Mike capital is also tight. industry players to revisit brand identity, Thornbrugh. “But we firmly believe reprioritize metrics and rethink how that as a company, regardless of what

38 CSP February 2010 we’re selling—gasoline, fountain the remaining brand Hot Markets drinks, fresh pastries—we want to have network in Massachusetts and New Building or acquiring in areas where the the dominant share of that.” Hampshire. According to company population is shifting can be one ingredient And QuikTrip presumes everyone spokesperson Margaret Chabris, Puget for success. Real-estate advisers suggest the holds the same position. “That keeps Sound, Wash.; Washington, D.C.; Bal- following as prime-growth regions: us working every day to make sure that timore; and northern New Jersey are nobody will take away our market also earmarked for growth, with other CALIFORNIAWarm climate, barriers to entry share,” Thornbrugh says. announcements coming. make properties attractive. Many areas have In terms of numbers, Chabris says little competition. SWARMING REVISITED the company is planning 250 more loca- Though the meaning of market domi- tions in 2010 and 300 to 350 in 2011, nance has fractured, store count remains and the company intends to get to NORTHEAST CORRIDOR From Virginia up a touchstone, even more so with conven- about 400 a year “for the near future.” to New Hampshire, dated sites, few-and-far- ience retailing today. Al Meyers, senior At press time, the company had about between locations and barriers to entry add vice president of Columbus, Ohio-based 5,800 locations in the , up to great potential. TNS Retail Forward Inc., says a signifi- with about 30 under construction. FLORIDA In areas that are seeing recovery, cant number of motorists will still pick Circle K’s Bouchard says the issue weather and population growth continue to a station because it’s an easy right turn of numbers falls back to the chain’s make the state appealing. on their way home from work. In that underlying concept. “If you take a case, having those numbers helps. QuikTrip in a big city like Phoenix, they Marketing and operations also ben- can cover the market there with 80 to CHICAGO A business hub with a solid base efit immensely, allowing the spread of 90 [high-volume] stores. With us, we of corporate entities, the area continues to advertising and management costs over have 350 stores in this market,” he says. command higher multiples. a larger sales base. There’s also greater “But our definition of the store [for that brand recognition, buying power and area] is different.” scale to match distribution overhead. Generally, Circle K’s strategy is to MID-ATLANTIC STATES WEST TO TEXAS Of the nation’s top chains, 7-Eleven focus on the market. In areas off major Population growth, vibrant economies and state officials willing to woo new business with has played the numbers card through- highways, a big-box, 4,500-square-foot tax breaks combine for greater appeal. out its 83-year history, renewing the store with 12 multiproduct dispensers strategy recently with announcements (MPDs) and a large food offering may to grow in more than a dozen targeted be appropriate. In markets. Kent Schlesselman, senior residential areas, consultant for Market Planning Solu- smaller neighbor- tions Inc. (MPSI), Tulsa, says, “7-Eleven hood offerings may tends to achieve their levels of perform- be a better fit. A ance through site numbers—through small-format store sheer volume of number of sites.” replicated in greater Indeed, in November and December numbers can reap $1 the industry was bombarded with million to $1.5 million a year headlines of 7-Eleven’s conquests: in sales to make the investment rea- quadrupling its presence in Northern sonable, according to Bouchard. A California, purchasing 13 stores in Vir- larger-format store may take $2 million ginia, planning 75 stores in North to $2.5 million to achieve such prof- Texas, opening 100 stores in New York itability. The chain now has more than Source: NRC Realty & Capital Advisors over the next five years and acquiring 3,000 stores in the United States.

February 2010 CSP 39 Why People retail. “The larger-footprint conven- ience store allows us to present the most May Sell in 2010 options to delight our customers; it Even when access to credit was tough, gives us the biggest variety of fountain, buyers seemed to outnumber sellers in packaged drinks, snacks and candy and 2009. Here’s a few reasons why more allows us the space necessary to appro- sellers may reenter the market this year. priately present prepared food.” factor with the larger players who bring That strategy is working. Susser’s 1. Changes in capital-gains more capital to the table, deeper same-store merchandise sales for third- taxes implemented while resources and greater buying power,” he quarter 2009 increased by 4%. And c- President Bush was in the says. While still tipping his hat to the store merchandise sales from all Susser innovative, nimble independent, he says, stores totaled $201.2 million, up 6.3% White House will soon “A larger competitor can charge the from the third quarter of 2008, on par expire. same and earn more or afford to charge with NACS industry averages. less and make the same.” As Schlesselman puts it, “Over the 2. People who held off in past 10 to 15 years … the market has 2009 still want to sell. WALLET WATCH been consistently progressing toward Meanwhile, as Bentonville, Ark.-based larger and larger formats of c-stores. 3. Pressures to either Wal-Mart has proven, big-box domi- Ambitious brands that want to achieve nance also creates an all-powerful that dominant position will be more reinvest or sell will mount. competitor that likely to spend compels con- money on new Source: Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc. “We’re not out [for] sumers to drive world conquest. But sites where they past the competi- we firmly believe that can locate larger- Though active in the past regarding tion. “You could as a company, format stores acquisitions, Circle K’s growth in 2009 certainly argue,” rather than spend- came largely from a deal with Fairfax, Va.- says Meyers, “that regardless of what ing money on based ExxonMobil for 43 Phoenix loca- if you had a mas- we’re selling, we want existing facilities tions and control of its 448-store On the sive store with to have the dominant that may be out- Run franchise. (See sidebar on p. 42.) very low fuel share of that.” dated or of insuf- Circle K’s “quieter year” of acquisi- prices, a clean ficient capacity.” tions may change. Initially, the economic [environment] and had a better selec- On the day that CSP interviewed downturn, in Bouchard’s opinion, did tion of fresh foods, hot dogs and cof- Thornbrugh of QuikTrip, the company not depress valuations for c-stores as fee, people would go out of their way had just opened another location in the greatly as it did office space or other to get to your facility.” Dallas area five hours prior, bringing its types of commercial real estate. But he Susser is one company taking total to 536—and 15 more are on the says multiples, or the numbers that dic- advantage of that strategy. The com- way by April 2010. tate the value of a potential c-store acqui- pany’s Stripes-branded stores have gone Thornbrugh knows that’s a “pretty sition, are becoming “more realistic,” a from a 2,400-square-foot store format phenomenal” rate. But for QuikTrip, it’s potential sign of renewed activity. to one that is 5,000 to 8,000 square feet. not about having the store numbers. In Dominance based on store count still “About 20% of our portfolio today is fact, QuikTrip is known for doing what carries competitive weight, according to what we would call our larger-box for- it calls “scrape-and-builds” on many of Roger Woodman, managing director for mat, and that’s what we’ve been build- its stores; the company builds a new store Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc., . ing over the last several years,” says on an existing lot and then “scrapes” “Market domination continues to be a Steve DeSutter, president and CEO of away the old one to make space for a

February 2010 CSP 41 Dominance Via Franchising

Two major chains—Dallas-based 7-Eleven Inc. and Circle K’s parent, Laval, Last year, Circle K doubled its franchise base by taking over the 448- -based Alimentation Couche-Tard—have committed to growth through store On the Run franchise from Fairfax, Va.-based ExxonMobil. franchising, an effort that might lead to store-count dominance in certain markets. Kent Schlesselman, senior consultant for Market Planning Solutions Inc. For 7-Eleven, the plan is to be completely franchised by 2013. At press (MPSI), Tulsa, Okla., says, “ExxonMobil’s sale of On the Run to Couche-Tard time, 4,460 of its 5,800 U.S. stores were traditional franchises. And more would appear to be the one sale that might tip certain markets in the than 150 had gone through the company’s business-conversion plan, which direction of a more dominant player, certainly in Circle K markets where allows current c-store owners to add their ranks to the 7-Eleven brand. Couche-Tard will rebrand On the Runs to Circle K.” “Eventually, we expect 50% of our growth will be business-conversion Couche-Tard CEO Alain Bouchard says the company is reviewing what locations,” says Margaret Chabris, a company spokesperson. it will do with the On the Run name going into the future. larger parking lot and more pumps. turned may also prove to be an element Again, as Thornbrugh says, the motiva- of dominance. Depending on a chain’s tion is volume. And the company is goals, that could mean a specific cate- achieving that to the tune of $7.8 billion gory such as cigarettes or foodservice, in annual revenue. It is considered for- or a collective of product groups such midable competition if not the dominant as convenience staples single-serve bev- player wherever it hangs its hat. erages, candy and tobacco. “That’s our goal: to go in and be the “If your customer spends 10% with very best of whatever’s out there, but we you and another 50% with the compe- understand at the same time, you’re not tition, they would be more dominant going to do it every night, and you’re given the same number of customers going to have to earn it, and sometimes each,” he says. “Share of wallet plus share it takes a while to get there,” Thornbrugh of [volume helps determine] what por- says. “QuikTrip has always been a very tion of the total market you command, patient, very methodical company.” whether with a small amount of stores Schlesselman expounds further on or [with many].” the company’s success. “QuikTrip is out- “If you have a good And the true picture crosses chan- standing in every aspect of the retail- brand, if you’re a best- nels, Meyers emphasizes. “We have to value chain,” which includes location, in-class operator and be very careful not to get hung up on facility, merchandising, operations, price, invest in stores, you our market. … We’re talking about brand and competition, he says. And can influence other convenience retailing,” he says. “We’ve while he doesn’t expect the company’s retailers. You become seen drug stores and dollar stores [step store numbers to increase a lot, he says, in]. Convenience retailing through the “Their share will probably increase with better as an industry.” Internet has encroached on the niche better selection, and as their brand grows Alain Bouchard of c-stores, so you have to make sure and they do what they do.” Alimentation Couche-Tard not to put blinders on.” Arguably, the drive to be No. 1 for TODAY’S DOMINANCE petition, Meyers says. Retailers can many chains is a motivational tool vs. a In that context of market share, retailers measure this dynamic by reviewing financial goal. For many at the helm, that can look at dominance from two pri- same-store comparisons against cus- mindset of winning—as if the business mary metrics: dollars and volume. The tomer or population growth. were a linear, start-to-finish-line race— first deals with money spent, or what The other way to look at dominance brings a passion to the workplace. many call share of wallet. It’s looking is by volume of product sold. Similar “We come at everything from a value at how much customers spend at a to dollars spent, how much of a partic- proposition,” says Tom Kelso, managing retailer’s stores compared to the com- ular product or product category director and principal for Matrix Cap-

42 CSP February 2010 ital Markets Group Inc., Richmond, Va. The foodservice offering includes much differently than others. Susser, for “Everybody, even the most testosterone- fresh deli sandwiches, fruit cups and sal- instance, has a well-established propri- driven individual, is ultimately trying ads, as well as bakery good items such etary offer called the Laredo Taco Com- to create as much value for their share- as fresh doughnuts, cookies and muffins. pany. Currently, the chain is converting holders as possible.” “What QuikTrip knows,” Thorn- all of its Country Cookin’ restaurants, Market dominance, then, is just one brugh says, “is that it will take us a long acquired as part of a 2007 168-store of many business strategies designed to time to get as good as we want to be with Town & Country acquisition, to Laredo. build value. Other companies may not the fresh-food market. And we’re patient; At press time, about one-third of the 100 have the ability to achieve the edge of store we understand we have a lot to learn. We former Town & Country stores that had numbers, so they may achieve success by think we have the right locations; we’re foodservice had been converted. In addi- developing niche concepts, he says. tion to core menu items served at all loca- “So for them, it’s not about the tions, the company regionalizes its number of stores or gallons, but it’s offerings to “range from a specially made also value-driven,” he says. “Do every- picadilla or carne asada in the Rio thing with the idea of creating value.” Grande valley to a custom-flavored ham- burger or specialty in West Texas,” says DEVOURING SHARE DeSutter. Selection gives employees the For many retailers, creating value means chance to express regional input and take increasing the bottom line, an exercise pride in the final offering. that seemingly has little to do with dom- According to Charles Wetzel, presi- inating a market. Along such lines, cut- dent and chief operating officer for Ft. ting costs or selling more of something Worth, Texas-based Buxton Co., a mar- than in the previous year all fall in line ket planning and services firm, “The with creating value. What ties the con- [chains] that have really shown market cepts together are the metrics and the “The smaller you are, dominance, not only today but for function of measuring progress. the more flexible, the tomorrow, are the ones that truly under- The desire—in some cases a cultural more volatile and the stand who their customers are and how passion—to improve upon metrics all more passionate to to put better product in the area that align with the penchant to dominate, see a change.” resonates well with that customer base.” to surpass both internal goals and Sam Odeh numbers achieved by competitors. JOBBER TRANSITION Power Mart Corp. For a company like QuikTrip, its Regional jobbers, many of whom oper- “play to win” mentality now applies to absolutely convinced we have the right ate c-stores themselves, have shown an foodservice, where it stands poised to people. But it’s like anything else—it will understanding for how to approach a execute at a level that matches its highly take us time to get as good as we want to local market. In addition, their long- competitive reputation. The company be. It took us an awfully long time to standing ties to the majors have made has recently completed commissaries understand and get good at gasoline. them beneficiaries of the oil companies’ in Dallas, Atlanta, Phoenix, City And we think we’re pretty good. collective decision to divest. And as job- and Tulsa to “more than adequately” “As for what’s next, who knows? But bers assume control over retail networks cover the stores it currently has in I can tell you right now, we’re focused in metro areas, the question arises as to place. That process started four years on one thing and one thing only, and how well their expertise will translate ago with the first one in Tulsa, but that’s to get as good as we possibly can into being oil-company franchisees. Thornbrugh says the company has be at fresh foods.” Recent lawsuits filed in the Midwest been “working pretty diligently on it But QuikTrip is arguably a late and the Northeast hint at problems for the last six to seven years.” bloomer and is approaching foodservice from both the dealer and jobber classes

44 CSP February 2010 of trade. One Midwest jobber reported scale. Circle K’s Bouchard says operating Again, the core issue is value. “If [a numerous concerns ranging from multiple types of business formats and retailer’s] not getting value for the technology to franchise fees that he store configurations gets easier as the money he’s spending on a franchise in encountered in the year since he closed number of stores in the chain grows. monthly or annual fees, it gets to be a on a multisite deal with a major. How- As for retailers operating both a pro- real economic issue,” says Kelso of ever, he says that the two sides “have prietary chain and a franchise, Bouchard Matrix. “Profitability in c-stores is very made progress” on numerous fronts. says, “I would think they would enjoy tight. If you’re not getting more sales (Editor’s Note: CSP is choosing not working [with a franchisor] because they because you’re a part of that franchise, to identify the jobber or the oil com- get the benefit of a structurally organized then really, you’re getting no more than pany because this report did not focus company, with a model that works and the way you’ve always operated in the on how widespread or systematic his is proven, something they can learn from past. You’re losing money because concerns were.) and apply to their [other] stores.” Since they’re not giving value in return.” Part of the Midwest retailer’s con- the On the Run deal, Circle K now has The value equation will have an effect cern also stemmed from having a large about 900 franchises, 4,400 company- as jobbers assume greater presence in proprietary c-store chain. Running that ops and about 600 “affiliated” stores in large metro areas. Their ability to convert chain—which he currently considers North America. the increased-market presence into a sig- his “growth brand”—and the major- However, Bouchard admits, “Seeing nificant return will be tested. But again, oil franchise creates inefficiencies at the [the value] up front, it’s not always evi- even jobbers who have a greater market administrative level. dent. But over time, they can get the presence are primarily focused on cre- The issue is definitely a matter of benefit of the franchise.” ating value, according to Kelso.

46 CSP February 2010 LAND GRAB for the first time, but at such a large quan- In a down economy, value has many tity. … Just due to the way the economy meanings. For those interested in is … a lot of them are being aggressive.” acquisition or new builds as a way to To that point, it’s not just the increase physical dominance of a mar- c-store giants seeking dominance. ket, value has to do with tangibles. Are Others, including several mid-size and prices for land, assets, materials and smaller operators, are taking the dull labor really going down? economy to better position themselves Some have seen prices fall. “We have in both store count and individual felt a benefit in some of the land for new store value. sites; we’ve been able to see some reduc- John Jackson of Jackson Food tion in asking price for those properties,” Stores, Meridian, Idaho, is one retailer says Susser’s DeSutter. “We have seen an making such acquisitions. From Shell, opportunity in land as we build a land he acquired 54 company operated sites bank to acquire properties at more through a joint venture, and he will attractive prices, and we take advantage sell wholesale fuels to 42 dealer sites of those when they make sense.” in Seattle. That came on the heels of a few other pickups in “We have seen an Reno, Nev., from Chevron and Texaco. opportunity in land But he cautions as we build a land that the deals aren’t all bank to acquire that: “We haven’t got- properties at more ten any fire-sale type attractive prices, and pricing. We feel the we take advantage of economics were those when they reasonable, but we didn’t enjoy any huge make sense.” depressed values. We’re always looking for opportunities.” Thornbrugh of QuikTrip says, “Chet has said numerous times: A recession is TWO STRATEGIES, a terrible thing to waste. And what he ONE GOAL meant by that was that there’s no ques- Greg Mitchell, president of Amarillo, tion when there is a recession that land Texas-based Toot’N Totum, might say costs are cheaper, materials that you pur- the same. Despite the company’s blatant chase are cheaper, be that for construc- Amarillo dominance, with 61 stores in tion of a new store or whatever. We’ve the area, Mitchell recently decided to hopefully been pretty sound in our deci- raze and rebuild three locations to make sions and we’re able to take advantage of them more modern. The company is some of those scenarios.” also building two new locations. Toot’N Wetzel of Buxton says, “You have an Totum stores range in size from 2,500 open market in the sense that a lot of the square feet to 4,000 square feet. c-stores are able to grab real estate, not “The other two are just because the city of Amarillo has been expanding, and we are not serving those neighborhoods to the extent that we need to be,” he says. Amarillo has an estimated population of more than 190,000. “But the other three are just old, they’re in very good traffic locations and they have the potential for much more volume. But because of the way they are, they’re not able to grow, because they didn’t have the size and the potential for more parking, more gas pumps, more coolers, more of all the things we do in new stores. “So we are adjusting as we can afford to, to put in the stuff that’s going to be here many, many years in the future.” Another Amarillo brand and Toot’N Totum’s closest competitor in store numbers, Pak-A-Sak Inc. is taking its own approach. President Terry McKee has eight of his 15 locations in Amarillo. A new location is in the works out- side of Amarillo by an hour. He’s not intimidated by Toot’N Totum’s growth, but he does feel Amarillo is saturated. “Everybody wants to go in the growth areas; that’s just a given,” he says. “If an area is growing, then there’s a need for a store, so that would be a strategy of ours. If it’s too saturated, you have to look at that, too.” McKee won’t stray too far, though. The furthest Pak-A-Sak is 120 miles away. And while Pak-A-Sak and Toot’n Totum are approaching Amarillo differently, they both fit into scenarios that Wetzel describes. Examining what drives a company to build market dominance begins with an assessment of existing locations and where retailers believe their core customers are.

ACCESS TO CAPITAL From an acquisition perspective, the big players have gotten more dominant, simply because of greater access to capital, says Dennis Ruben, managing director of NRC Realty & Capital Advisors, Scottsdale, Ariz. Companies such as Couche-Tard are taking advantage of the opportunities out there, he says: “Everything on the acquisition front is about the availability of capital. It all ties back to the capital-financ- ing market. It remains hard for anything, let alone c-stores.” Others agree. As Kelso of Matrix says, “The real winners [in 2009] were those who had access to capital. And sellers who were bold enough to go into the market when there really were more buyers than sellers.” But other retailers created their own opportunities. Odeh is happy to talk about how he was able to afford his new, $5-mil- lion location in affluent Elmhurst, Ill. He succeeded after being rejected by 19 banks, even though he had 75% equity and strong

48 CSP February 2010 cash flow in terms of debt ratio—and the institutions ranged from one-branch to nationwide banks. That money chase forced a one-year project to take two years to complete as Odeh made efforts to “tighten the belt” and fund it on his own. He also used his own money as a personal vendetta against those banks. “I was not going to, after the way they treated me, leave that money at their disposal,” he says. “So I basically took all the money out and I put it into the company and into our project. “That was my way of saying, ‘You know what, I’m just a small guy, but this is one way I can get back at you and not be able to take my money and let you make money on it. I’ll do whatever I can.’ ” He advises other independents, “You’ve really got to rein- vent yourself and re-evaluate everything. … I hate to say this, but there’s no knight in shining armor that’s going to come along—definitely not the banks. And you’ve really got to reach within your means, and you’ve got to do it yourself. No one’s going to do it for you.” Yet despite the challenges, he believes independents can be market dominators. “It’s not really numbers of stores. Actually, the bigger you are … the bigger the ship for the cap- tain to steer,” he says. “The smaller you are, the more flexible, the more volatile and the more passionate to see a change.”

PLAYING OFFENSE In the end, most retailers believe store count is only a small part of achieving dominance. “If you have a good brand, if you’re a best-in-class operator and invest in stores, you can influence the other retailers,” Bouchard of Circle K says. “You become better as an industry and you become a better store to go to for the consumer, and you attract and gain market share.” To that end, Schlesselman of MPSI emphasizes strategy: “[That] is what determines whether they end up dominating a market or whether they just end up being a player in the market. There’s a lot that goes into that strategy.” And yet, surprisingly, complacency has its rewards. Meyers of TNS Retail Forward says operators can “survive and prosper in a ‘me too’ sea of thousands because of loca- tion. But to take away more than your fair share, you have to do something unique and different.” He urges retailers to be proactive. If four stores on an intersection decide to keep things status quo, the second that one of them “comes in with a better mousetrap, the other three are completely at risk.” I

February 2010 CSP 49