The metrics for NACS Daily tell a clear story of what’s important to those in our industry: they want to know who is merging with who, what legislation will impact their business for better or worse, and where the heck Buc-ee’s will open its next store.
From following the potential Seven & i and Couche-Tard merger that commanded focus for the first quarter of the year to how retailers navigated the penny shortage as the U.S. Mint produced the final penny, these stories showed how dynamic, critical and exciting the convenience industry is.
1. Where Buc-ee’s Is Building. Everyone wants to know what Buc-ee’s is up to—and more importantly where the chain is opening new stores. NACS Media tracked where Buc-ee’s will open its next stores, following openings in Virginia, Mississippi and its largest travel center in Georgia in 2025, as well as announcements for future locations in North Carolina, Ohio, Arizona and more. Most recently, Buc-ee’s said it was near groundbreaking for its first Wisconsin location.
Aside from Buc-ee’s openings, readers were intrigued by Rutter’s new c-store with a bar and sports lounge, which opened its first location in April followed by a second in May. The nearly 11,000-square-foot concept features a 21+ space with nearly 75 licensed beverage options, including canned cocktails, beer and wine, five video gaming terminals, large-screen TVs to watch sports and access to Rutter’s foodservice menu.
2. RaceTrac Acquires Potbelly. In September, RaceTrac Inc. announced it would acquire the Potbelly Corporation, a national QSR chain of almost 450 sandwich shops, in a $566 million all-cash transaction. The transaction was completed on October 23. Listen to NACS’ Jeff Lenard discuss the industry trends that make this acquisition so pivotal on the Convenience Matters podcast episode: The Trends Behind RaceTrac’s Potbelly Acquisition.
3. The End of the Penny. The U.S. Mint started phasing out the penny in 2025 and produced the final coin on November 13. Retailers quickly started to see penny shortages in stores, and some such as Kwik Trip adopted penny-free policies in store. NACS has been advocating for Congress and the Administration to resolve the issue, and sent a letter asking lawmakers to create a national law allowing businesses to round transactions to the nearest nickel. Read more about the “Great Penny Mess” here.
4. NACS Foundation Rescues 120,380 Pounds of Food. On the last day of the 2025 NACS Show (October 17, 2025), the NACS Foundation, partner Vontier Corporation and FoodRecovery.org came together to support the Foundation’s Neighborhood Nourish Program—collecting 120,380 pounds of food and drinks, equal to more than 100,000 meals, and donating the items to local community programs in Chicago. The 2025 NACS Show also set an attendance record for the city with 25,136 attendees.
5. The Seven & i/Couch-Tard Merger. The deal never came to fruition, but 2025 started off with continued talks between Seven & i Holdings, parent company of 7-Eleven, and Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT), parent company of Circle K, in attempts to reach a deal after Seven & i repeatedly rejected ACT’s takeover bids in 2024. In February, the founding Ito family of Seven & i Holdings failed to secure the money to buy it out. In March, ACT said it was exploring the sale of some U.S. locations to help it gain regulatory approval should it reach a deal to take over Seven & i. In other ACT news, the company received clearance from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to proceed with its acquisition of GetGo Café + Market (GetGo) from Giant Eagle Inc in June.
6. Biofuel Tax Credits Bill. In May, U.S. Reps. Mike Carey (R-Ohio-15) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa-01) introduced legislation to extend biofuel tax incentives including the Section 40A biodiesel blenders’ credit. NACS supported the bill.
7. Sunoco Acquires Parkland. In May, Sunoco announced it would acquire Parkland in a $9.1 billion deal. The deal was “a move the companies said would create the largest independent fuel distributor in the Americas,” reported Reuters.
8. Costco Opens Its First Stand Alone Gas Station. In June, the city of Mission Viejo, California, approved plans for Costco to open its first ever stand-alone gas station in a tear down of a former Bed, Bath and Beyond store. The station will feature 40 pumps, will not have a convenience store and will only be available to Costco members.
9. FDA Extends Food Traceability Rule. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) extended the compliance date for its Food Traceability Rule by an additional 30 months, giving businesses until July 20, 2028, to comply. Although the compliance deadline is being extended, the FDA states that it has no plans to change the rule’s existing requirements. NACS will continue to advocate for major changes to, or withdrawal of, the rule.
10. Senate Votes to Ban Intoxicating Hemp. On November 10, the United States Senate passed legislation that effectively bans intoxicating hemp beverages from being sold as part of the package to reopen the federal government. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) included language in the Agriculture Appropriations portion of the bill designed to close the “hemp loophole” created by the 2018 Farm Bill. For more information about what this ban might potentially mean for the industry, check out a recent NACS Daily op-ed by Melissa Vonder Haar: "OPINION: Closing the Hemp ‘Loophole’ Won’t Close the Problem."