Background

Road weary travelers rely on convenience stores for refreshing drinks or snacks while fueling up for the next leg of their trip. And business is booming, according to convenience.org with over 160 million daily transactions and $705.7 billion in sales for 2021. Therefore, it's essential to keep operations running smoothly for stores like Maverik, a Salt Lake City, UT-based convenience store chain.

Maverik currently operates in 14 states with 421 stores making it the largest independent fuel marketer in the Intermountain West. In addition, in July Maverik was ranked No. 5 in USA Today's Reader's Choice "10 Best Gas Station Brands" and No. 22 in CSP's "Top 202 Convenience Stores 2022."

Opportunity/Challenge

Keith Huntington, an IT Specialist I with Maverik, describes the various assets that need to be traced including both merchandising and technical equipment. Huntington and his team oversee a warehouse with over $5 million in inventory registers, credit card machines, computers, ovens, freezers, deli cases and more.

Stores will issue an alert ticket if there is an issue with equipment and then send it to the warehouse to be refurbished or replaced. The warehouse will then send the replacement equipment back to the store making the serial number critical to knowing where equipment is physically located. By doing a partial audit every week Huntington can finish a complete inventory once per quarter. "Our goal is to keep missing inventory under 1% of total value," he said.

When looking for asset tags to complete their asset tracking system, Huntington turned to Metalcraft. The Mason City, IA-based company has been providing identification solutions to companies since 1950 and has a reputation for durable products. Prior to using Metalcraft tags Huntington said they used the original serial number from the manufacturer which was not always a very accessible area. For example, deli cases were bolted down and the number was on the bottom making it difficult to get the number they needed to complete the inventory.

Solution

After reviewing and testing different samples, Huntington decided on Metalcraft's best-selling Foil Barcode Labels. The durable and versatile tags are photographically reproduced for maximum clarity and detail and then sealed within the anodic layer of the aluminum - ensuring accurate and reliable reads for years to come. 

The Foil Barcode Labels fit the bill for Maverik. "We put them on just about anything because it makes the inventory process easier and more simplified," said Huntington. "I've been really impressed with their performance - I haven't found one that has fallen off and the numbers are still intact."

Results

Huntington states they continue to be impressed with both Metalcraft's products and service. "We have no problem getting the tags we need," he said. "Even if I forget what number we need, Metalcraft keeps that information for me."

As far as improving their overall asset tracking process using Metalcraft tags? "They certainly make my life a lot easier," said Huntington. "I'm really happy with the tags and their performance."

To learn more about our asset tracking solutions, contact us today at [email protected].