On our journey to Las Vegas, TFFA staff networked its way through the world’s largest convenience and fuel retailing trade show, walking 100 miles and logging more than 250,000 steps.  Health benefits that were all but eliminated thanks to an abundance of indulgent snacks, beverages, and food during receptions that carried on deep into the evening hours.

Each year the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) hosts the NACS Show, an industry event that brings together 25,000 attendees to hear expert-driven education sessions while exploring the latest products and services.

For vendors, trade shows are a great way to sell products, increase brand recognition, and network with potential customers.  For this exact reason, TFFA invests its time and resources to attend various meetings, speak on panels, visit with old acquaintances, and make new friends while at the NACS Show.

So what exactly did TFFA see and do while at the NACS Show? To name a few: attended NACS State Executive and PMAA meetings, listened to dozens of education sessions, sampled a variety of candies and beverages, stuffed our faces full of pizza, shook hands with boxing legend Mike Tyson, previewed state of the art fueling equipment, shared meals with new friends, hopped on shuttles, Uber, and taxis more times than we can remember, and so much more.  

This year’s educational program featured a look back at Hurricane Harvey’s impact to the Texas gulf coast from a retailer’s perspective.  Doing Your Best to Prepare for the Worst captivated a packed room, with TFFA President/CEO Paul Hardin moderating, Imad Sarkis, TFFA board member and Vice President of Tri-Con, Inc., shared his experiences on overcoming challenges that arise during natural disasters.  Mike Lawshe, TFFA board member and President of Paragon Solutions, helped showgoers navigate the site selection and design process during the Strike it Rich — How to Optimize the Site Selection Process.  Both presentations exemplify why TFFA leadership continues to be viewed as a resource to industry professionals in the U.S. and to businesses abroad.

Throughout the four day event, TFFA staff visited with hundreds of exhibitors and attendees — several of which have since become members, registered for the upcoming Fuel & Convenience Summit, and purchased booths for the 2019 Southwest Fuel & Convenience Expo. 

Remaining a viable organization for the convenience retailing and fuel marketing industries in Texas is a core focus for TFFA, a never-ending journey that takes place one step at a time.

Thank you NACS for hosting such a great event.  We’ll see you next year!

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