News

ACS (The Association of Convenience Stores) are delighted to announce that the Innovation and NPD Showcase, which takes place on November 20th in the London Stadium, will be sponsored by IFE, International Food and Drink Expo 2025.

The Showcase is an exciting opportunity for suppliers to present their latest product or service which has either launched or will be launching in the future, while gaining invaluable feedback from an expert retailer panel and networking with leading retailers across the country.

ACS (The Association of Convenience Stores) would like to remind retailers about the advice available on the ACS website. The ACS Assured Advice guides and Training Scheme provide industry leading information and guides on all aspects of regulatory compliance for convenience retailing, meaning that by following this advice you will feel confident navigating policies and dealing with regulatory bodies.

Below are some of the guides available on the ACS website:

The past few days have seen riots sweep across various towns and cities in the UK, where many refugees, ethnic minorities, businesses, public buildings, the police, and the media have been targeted for violence and abuse.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) are conscious of the effect that this might have on its members, who may be affected or concerned about being impacted over the coming days. In light of these appalling events, ACS are working to provide help and guidance to retailers and colleagues during this time.

ACS is delighted to announce the line-up for this year’s panel session as part of the 2024 Local Shop Report launch.

The Local Shop Report provides a comprehensive look at the shops, retailers, colleagues and customers that make up the UK convenience sector. First published in 2012, the report has built every year to become a must-read in the industry for suppliers, retailers and both local and national decision makers.

The Department for Business and Trade have published an updated remit for the Low Pay Commission, following the change in Government after the General Election.

Every year, the Low Pay Commission gather evidence from businesses, workers and other interested parties about the impact of current National Living Wage rates, which is then followed by a recommendation to Government on what the following years’ rates should be. The Low Pay Commission’s decision-making process is focused by the remit that is given to it by the Government.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the latest statement from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on the importance of access to cash in communities.

The FCA have announced that from 18th September 2024, banks and building societies will be required to provide “reasonable additional cash services” when closing branches or making other changes to existing cash services. These may include banking hubs, ATMs, and Post Office facilities.

ACS has responded to new figures from the Crime Survey for England and Wales, published today, show that shoplifting offences have increased to a new 20 year high.

The figures released by the Office for National Statistics today (24th July) show that a total of 443,995 shoplifting offences were logged in the year to March 2024, up 30% on the previous year.

The data follows the last release of figures from the Crime Survey for England in Wales in April 2024, which also reported record increases in theft on the previous year.

Catch up on the latest with the ACS portal, the central hub for information, content, resources, and advice specifically curated for ACS members and suppliers. Those registered with the portal can access key policy information, recordings of ACS events and presentations, as well as further insights into the convenience sector.

New content is uploaded to the portal on a regular basis to keep all portal members up to date with the latest information about ACS, policy, and other important information across the sector. The latest updates include:

The Leverhulme Trade Charities Trust (LTCT), which provides financial aid for the families of those working in the convenience, grocery, and pharmacy trades, has announced applications for 2024/2025 undergraduate bursaries will open on the 1st of August and run until 15th October.

ACS is working with Government officials to understand the impact of the Crowdstrike cybersecurity outage that has affected systems and processes across the UK today (19th July). 

Cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike has reported that a defect in one of its software updates has led to issues with Windows operating systems. Early feedback from retailers is that some card terminals are affected, limiting payment options in store.