5 Things is a new weekly feature from CSP Daily News highlighting some of the recent convenience-store news that might otherwise slip through the cracks.
‘Shake Your Booty’
Valor Oil’s HOP Shops, convenience-stores chain known for their “disco” bathrooms that play music when a customer pushes the red button under the “Do Not Push the Red Button” sign, is swapping out the playlist, adding new songs, the company said. “These viral sensations are getting a brand-new soundtrack that’ll have you grooving,” the Owensboro, Kentucky-based company said. Six of its 15 locations feature the bathrooms. “Betty Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes, “Don’t You Forget About Me” by Simple Minds and “If I Could Turn Back Time” by Cher are among the new songs. The retailer is also developing the “If You Know, You Know” speakeasy concept, a “top-secret entrance” to the disco bathroom.
Gulf of Google
Chevron used the name “Gulf of America” in its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings release, following an executive order by President Donald Trump. The oil company previously used “Gulf of Mexico” to refer to that body of water, which stretches from Texas to Florida on the southeastern border of the United States to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico and as far east as Cuba. “We're calling it Gulf of America. That’s the position of the U.S. government now,” Chevron CEO Mike Wirth said on the earning call. “If Google Maps is using it, then Chevron is using it,” he added in an interview with the Financial Post. The Gulf of Mexico has had that name at least since the late 1600s. “We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources,” Google said. “When official names vary between countries, Maps users see their official local name. Everyone in the rest of the world sees both names. That applies here too.”
Baby Buc-ee’s
Teddy Swims and his girlfriend Raiche Wright are expecting their first child, and they are playfully naming the unborn baby after the Georgia songwriter and rapper’s “favorite place in the whole world”—Buc-ee’s. The couple stopped at a Buc-ee’s near Austin, Texas, the day they found out that Wright was pregnant. Regardless of the name they actually choose, Swims plans to call the child “Buc-ee,” he said on the Kelly Clarkson Show. At least they didn’t stop at Wawa.
Common Cents?
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), established by President Trump through an executive order, has a new cost-cutting target: the penny, reported CNN. “The penny costs over 3 cents to make and cost U.S. taxpayers over $179 million in FY2023,” DOGE said on X.com. “The Mint produced over 4.5 billion pennies in FY2023, around 40% of the 11.4 billion coins for circulation produced. Penny (or 3 cents!) for your thoughts.” Jeff Lenard, vice president of strategic industry initiatives at the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), said about 52 million in-person cash transactions occur at c-stores every day. “If we save every one of these customers two seconds, that’s 104 million seconds or 1,203 days,” Lenard told CNN. “And that doesn’t factor in time compounding—saving two seconds for the other people waiting in line before they get to pay. That’s some serious productivity.”
The Pouch Grows Up
For the first time in more than 20 years, Capri Sun is available in a resealable bottle as well as the familiar pouch. The 12-ounce bottles contain the equivalent of two pouches of juice in the brand’s most popular flavors: Fruit Punch, Pacific Cooler and Strawberry Kiwi. The Kraft Heinz Company said the new packaging is aimed at convenience stores. It said that fans have been demanding a larger size for years. Could it be that kids who grew up with Capri Sun still want to drink it, but don’t want to be seen sipping it from a pouch?
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.