Here in South Louisiana, we’re thinking about Tropical Storm Isaac right now. People on the Gulf Coast are once again preparing for it to become a hurricane. When a storm is about two days out people pay attention to the cone of uncertainty.
Cone of uncertainty sounds like a reference to my career or a mystery ice cream treat, but it’s actually a computer model that forecasters develop to show all the possible locations where a hurricane can make landfall. In the southern part of Louisiana, that cone doesn’t have to get too close before bottled water, batteries, food and beer fly off shelves.
When a storm is about a day out, shelves are empty, lines at the gas pumps are long and one can expect c-stores to start running out of fuel. Stores stock up as much as the can and prepare for the worst. Sammy’s Country Store is south of Maurice, Louisiana. Here, customers find the usual c-store items and a few extras that come in pretty handy during hurricane season. This little convenience store stocks utility poles. Hurricane force winds tear down power lines, poles and the boxes that connect the electric service to homes. Sammy Broussard doesn’t sell a lot of these poles throughout the year.
Sammy Broussard has plenty of utility poles in his convenience store. Click on the photo to read the full profile in the September 2011 issue of NACS Magazine.
After a storm, he might be the only place open with these important items. After a hurricane, convenience stores like Sammy’s Country Store play an important role in getting life back to normal. Don’t take your local c-store for granted. Browse around, see what local stores have in stock so you know where to go in case of an emergency. Convenience stores are usually the last retailers to close during these emergencies.
Is there a void in your life? Are you reading NACS Magazine? Why not? If you don’t subscribe you’ll miss the September 2012 issue and my story about a Texas convenience store that sells over 104,000 kolaches every seven days. Now that’s volume!
It’s informative. No matter what business you’re in, you’ll learn something from reading about how successful people stay ahead of the competition.
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