ALEXANDRIA, VA - More than 90,000 of the 146,300 convenience and fuel retailing sites in the U.S. are operated by independent operators. As this segment of the industry continues to flourish, competition and the economy have necessitated the organization of groups supporting the independent operator community.

The Virginia Asian American Store Owners Association (VAASOA) is one of the newest ethnic American trade associations (EATA) to join like independents together. A vision of Vipul Patel, NACS Board member and executive director of the Asian American Store Owners Association, and Minesh Patel, chairman of VAASOA, the association offers store owners doing business in Virginia the opportunity to compete with larger chains.

"Ours is a simple concept"; Minesh Patel said. "By strengthening the relationship between store owners and suppliers we strive to create business partnerships that allow all of us to grow."

Patel added, "VAASOA is proud to be hosting its first Virginia C-Store Expo on July 28 at the Richmond Raceway Complex. It is amazing that in its first year, the association has been able to assemble more than 70 participating vendors covering every aspect of the convenience store business."

In fact, for an expo organized in just the last four months, the 70-plus vendors is a testimonial to the business community that is striving to get in front of the growing number of independent convenience store owner operators in Virginia and across the nation.

"NACS is an important part of our success. Whether you are looking for information on products and services or having a voice in government regulations, membership in NACS is invaluable," said Patel, adding, "Through VAASOA??s collaboration with NACS, our members can attend training sessions, workshops and become a part of a global network of store owners. Like NACS, VAASOA understands the meaning behind strength in numbers. I consider attendance at the NACS Show a requirement for my success and we urge all store owners to attend."

Mark your calendars for October 1 to 4 and register today to attend the NACS Show this year in Chicago. Learn more about VAASOA at vaasoa.com.

(Editor??s note: NACS Vice President of Member Services Michael Davis is the author of this article and is leading the association??s engagement with independent and ethnic-American c-store operators. He can be reached at mdavis@nacsonline.com.)