Little General, Beckley, W.Va., made its first delivery in early 2020 through a partnership with DoorDash. Today, about 20% of locations offer delivery, according to Chris Rose, director of technology for the chain.

Once COVID-19 became a global pandemic in March 2020, Little General’s delivery option became a valuable proposition. “It was one of those big eye openers,” says Rose.

Moving forward, Rose says Little General is looking to expand its delivery with DoorDash to more units and hopefully integrate the service with its loyalty program. “It is good to work for a company that lets us freely take our ideas and run with them,” says Jones. “That’s the open mindset that more convenience-store chains should go with. It helps steer innovation.”