LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Today’s convenience store landscape is evolving to satisfy many types of consumers, including commuters who need more than just gasoline to make a trip from point A to point B.

According to the Los Angeles News Group, convenience stores have “shift gears” as customers need more than “just gas” – particularly when customers such as Valentino Colon prepare to make a 100-mile road trip.

The news source writes that convenience store customers such as Colon are among “the many consumers whose buying habits are affected by their commute.” NACS spokesman Jeff Lenard adds to this theory, noting that longer commuters present new opportunities for retailers because they offer extended hours of service and are often located near freeways and interstates.

Lenard noted that some commuters consider “their store” to be somewhere between home and work. “You'll see people who want to break up their route and stop half way,” he told the news source, adding that convenience stores have a history of catering to workers, as extended hours began as a way to meet the needs of late-shift hospital and factory workers.  

However, Lenard added that to continue evolving and satisfying consumer demand, convenience stores must find new profit centers to rely on, as gasoline has become less profitable.

“That’s why you're seeing 7-Eleven selling sushi and you see Famima changing the way convenience stores look,” he told the news source, adding, “It's not enough to expect people to come to you to save a couple seconds.… Now I think you're seeing retailers that want to literally ‘wow’ their customers, whether through store design, innovative products or friendly employees.”