Neil Godbout: Where have all the convenience stores gone?
The business model for convenience stores large and small was based on grocery stores being open only eight hours a day, six days a week and closed on Sundays.
One of my first paying jobs in the 1980’s was working at the Red Rooster grocery store on Highway 97 in Winfield, north of Kelowna.
I spent my shifts calling Pop, Snacks, Cigarettes, Lottery Tickets, and Slushies (same as Slurpees, but 7-Eleven owns that name).
The Red Roosters are long gone, as are the Mr. G’s shops that used to be scattered throughout Prince George. What remains are a handful of independent stores and the once-ubiquitous 7-Eleven stores. That year, however, 7-Eleven permanently closed its Queensway and 20th Avenue locations.
Crime and finding and retaining staff were certainly factors in their closures, but larger factors also play a role.
The business model for convenience stores large and small was based on grocery stores being open only eight hours a day, six days a week and closed on Sundays. No milk or eggs on Saturday night? Run to the supermarket.
Now larger supermarkets are open much longer each day and offer many more products at cheaper prices, along with large warehouses.
The late hours for a supermarket also came in handy for late-night and early-morning coffee and snacks, either at the end of a night out partying with friends, or waking up the next morning with insufficient sleep and grabbing a coffee and sandwich on the way to work .
That was before fast-food joints opened drive-through lanes, and many of these are now open 24 hours a day.
Fewer smokers.
More lottery ticket outlets and expanded gambling options in person and online.
slurp? Most teenagers in need of a sugar fix would rather have a Starbucks Frappuccino or a Timmies Iced Cap.
Add Door Dash and other home delivery options for dining at home and suddenly there are the sausages spinning on stainless steel rotisserie skewers waiting to become hot dogs and the chicken, meatballs and potato wedges tanning under heat lamps in search of hungry customers have become less appealing.
There are still convenience stores in Prince George and there likely always will be some offering unique products and services along with the old school pit stop pickups.
But long gone are the glory days when they were the only game in town from dusk to dawn.
Neil Godbout is the Editor-in-Chief of the Prince George Citizen.
