AN EYE ON D&I
Grading the C-store Industry on DEI The channel is doing many things right, but there’s still much work to be done By Linda Lisanti THE WAY HEATHER SCHOTT, diversity,
equity and inclusion manager at Des Moines-based Krause Group, sees it, the convenience store industry has an amazing opportunity to drive change. “We get to interact with customers across all diversity spectrums daily, and we also have an industry where people can join our teams and grow their careers no matter where they start in life. These customers and associates represent all genders, ages, races, abilities, socioeconomic states, neurodiversity, and so much more. We exist across rural and urban customer bases. What other industry can say that?” noted Schott, who leads DEI for the parent company of convenience store chain Kum & Go LC, operator of 400 locations across 11 states. The real question, she says, is: How is the c-store industry utilizing this opportunity to create environments where people feel seen,
valued and comfortable working and shopping as their authentic selves? In this regard, she believes the industry has work to do. As part of a new industrywide initiative to facilitate engagement among all stakeholders in the convenience channel around diversity and inclusion, Convenience Store News recently asked members of its newly formed Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Board to rate the overall industry on DEI and weigh in on what the channel is doing right and where it needs to improve. Schott, a member of the board, says what the industry is doing well is “showing up” for its communities, even in the face of pandemic-driven challenges. “We are safe spaces for people to warm up and use our restrooms. We are the friendly good morning as people grab their coffee in the morning, and quick lunch replacements as they rush off to life,” she said. Where the industry needs to improve is in welcoming all, according to Schott. “Do we greet nonbinary folks without gendering them? Do we have spaces easy to move through for those with different abilities? Are our AP RIL
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