Lincoln, NE – I love people who think outside the box. It’s why I love doing the Gas Station Gourmet. I’ve seen a lot of things out there. When I found that Mike Anderson had a convenience store in his Ford dealership I was completely hooked on this story. He owns owns five automobile dealerships and a Honda Powersports dealership, in two Nebraska cities and in St. Joseph, Missouri. What could round things out? A convenience store of course.
Pizza, beverages & other c-store items inside a Ford Dealership.
He actually has two stores. The other is a free standing location called Andy’s Express. Mike looks at the convenience store business a little differently that some owners. “We’re not in the c-store business, we’re in the people business,” he explained.
Karolyn Pethoud, left & owner Mike Anderson are serving incredibly good chicken & making custom pizzas.
DRIVE THRU & CUSTOM PIZZA – His goal was to have a convenience store that was convenient in every way. A drive-thru at which customers could purchase any item in the store would help accomplish this. The drive-thru is great for busy moms and a real help to handicapped customers. If a customer pulls up with a pet, there’s a treat waiting at the window. A lot of places serve pizza, but pizza made fresh is a different story. Customers can order the toppings and watch as the pizza is put together and cooked. It just another extra customers have come to expect.
Andy’s Express was designed by our friends at Paragon Solutions. I come across their work all over the country. Mike Lawshe & his team amaze me all the time.
Mike Anderson’s management style is unique. It’s all about people, employees and customers. That doesn’t sound so unique? When you read about his very unique strategy to stay people-focused you will pause- and think.
Do you have this month’s NACS Magazine? There’s so much more to this story. Catch the rest of it in the current issue of NACS Magazine.
The Gas Station Gourmet column features individual operators who have out of the box ideas. If you’ve had great food in America’s gas stations, let me know by emailing me at
al@gasstationgourmet.com
Here’s the NACS link. http://www.nacsonline.com/magazine/Pages/default.aspx
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