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* I’m not sure what they’re going to do today, but here we go. BlackBerry users click here. Otherwise, you can just watch it play out, whatever it is…

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Mar 26, 12 @ 2:54 pm

Comments

I’m waiting for some analysis on the impact of online lottery sales on merchant sales…

Surprised the IL Retail Merchant’s Association didn’t do more behind the scenes to kill this one.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Mar 26, 12 @ 3:42 pm
–I’m waiting for some analysis on the impact of online lottery sales on merchant sales…

Surprised the IL Retail Merchant’s Association didn’t do more behind the scenes to kill this one.–

Me, too, considering they get a taste of every winner. Still, if it stands, it’s going to be easier to buy a Slurpee and a pack of smokes.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Mar 26, 12 @ 3:45 pm
@wordslinger -

More importantly, ticket-buyers are foot traffic, and foot traffic is profit.

But yes, you might be able to get your Slurpee a bit faster…depending on the neighborhood.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Mar 26, 12 @ 3:50 pm
–More importantly, ticket-buyers are foot traffic, and foot traffic is profit.–

That’s a real problem at the gas stations. Gasoline sales are not a profit center, they’re just collecting taxes and paying off the refiners. It’s the pop, chips, candy and other junk that have the margins.

With the use of cards at the pumps, they’ve been killing their own indoor business.

But once one started to convert to pumps that accepted cards, they all had to, to keep up with the competition’s convenience.

It’s a tough problem. They haven’t quite figured it out yet, except POP advertising for loss-leaders indoors.

Heck, there’s a gasoline station on North Avenue in Melrose Park where you can eat a dollar hot dog in a Lazy-boy by a fireplace, just to get you in the door (I don’t recommend the experience; not as glamorous as it sounds).

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Mar 26, 12 @ 4:09 pm