CHICAGO -- NACS’ State of the Industry Summit is all about data and trends. Here are seven statistics unveiled this week that had us picking our jaws up off the ground.
$10.6 billion
The convenience-store industry's pretax profit grew 1.6% from 2014, hitting this new record high. The overriding question hanging in the air, per RaceTrac president Billy Milam: "What are the odds for three consecutive record years?"
$2.45
The average retail price of a gallon of gasoline in 2015, down from $3.40 the previous year.
$700
The steep decline in gasoline prices put an extra $700 into the pockets of the average household. Where did it go? Motorists drove more miles, and consumers traded up to premium products—gasoline, beer and cigarettes, to name a few.
16 million
The number of new cars and light-duty trucks sold in 2015, a new auto-sales record. What were consumers buying? Lots of trucks (top four brands):
- Ford F Series: 695,143
- Chevy Silverado: 537,552
- Dodge Ram: 407,981
- Toyota Camry: 392,056
$10 billion
The collective cost of credit-card fees paid by the convenience-store industry was down for the first time in six years. "It's difficult to say I'm happy about $10 billion in credit-card fees, but that's down $1.4 billion from last year," Milam said.
82%
Five years ago, energy drinks sold accounted for only about half the volume of carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) in c-stores. Today, they equate to 82% of CSD sales. At this rate, energy drinks will overtake CSDs in the next three years.
$1,431
Bagged candy, averaging $1,431 in monthly sales per store, surpassed chocolate bars ($1,320) in convenience-store dollar sales for the first time, according to CSX and Nielsen figures.
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