An estimated 40 million drivers refuel their vehicles each day in the United States.
That’s a lot of daily decision-making going on among people who need to buy gas, and convenience stores are a beacon for these consumers—the industry has nearly 122,000 stores across the U.S. that sell fuel.
With a station on most street corners, consumers have ample choice and oftentimes a clear preference for where they choose to fill up. During a recent Convenience Matters podcast, host Jeff Lenard and guest Adam Rosenblatt shared insights from a NACS consumer survey that dug into the minds of gas-buying customers.
In 2024, the U.S. convenience store industry recorded $501.9 billion in fuel sales, according to the NACS State of the Industry Report® of 2024 Data. This figure was down from 2023 due to greater vehicle fuel efficiency, fewer drivers on the road (a trend since 2020) and continued economic concerns.
Although the average price per gallon has been relatively flat this year compared to 2024, the aftereffects of record gas prices in 2022 continue to linger.
"People are trying to stretch their dollar, often starting at the gas pump,” said Rosenblatt, adding that 46% of people surveyed say they are driving less than last year. “That's a big change for the roads, and it's going to have a ripple effect on convenience stores, whether it's at the pump or inside the store.”
Lenard and Rosenblatt talked about some of the changes seen in consumer behavior over the decades. An insight from a 2008 NACS survey found consumers would change their driving behavior when gasoline prices reached a tipping point of $3.71 per gallon, which has been surpassed numerous times over the past 17 years.
Back then consumers also said they would be willing to drive 10 minutes out their way just to save five cents per gallon on their fill up. Today, however, a growing number of consumers are willing to drive out of their way to frequent their favorite convenience store.
“We found that people are more likely to go out of their way to go to the c-store they like more. It's that loyalty aspect—it's the actual real loyalty that the store employee shows to the customer” that the survey says makes a difference, said Rosenblatt.
Consumers enjoy having a favorite place to refuel and refresh. “There are a lot of people who come and go into a c-store, and the store employee might be the first person they talk to that day … putting in that effort and making sure employees realize that is exciting because they're doing something bigger than just handing somebody a receipt” is important, he said.
Check out key insights from the recent consumer survey in the NACS Magazine feature, “Navigating the Customer's Path to the Pump.”