GiftCard Partners Blog

As the days get longer and the temperatures rise, summer presents the perfect opportunity to show appreciation to partners, program members, employees, and colleagues. Gift cards are increasingly becoming the go-to gift, offering flexibility and the ability to choose the perfect present. In 2023, the Retail Gift Card Association (RGCA) reported that 70% of shoppers planned to buy gift cards for special occasions like Father’s Day, weddings, graduations, and birthdays. If you're considering giving a gift card this summer, here are some top ideas that will make your recipients' summer even brighter.

There has been a recent movement in the fashion industry to embrace diverse body types, especially when it comes to ad campaigns. Recently, Lane Bryant released the #ImNoAngel campaign, in what many say is in response to a Victoria’s Secret ad campaign that featured one very specific body type. The #ImNoAngel campaign invites the world to celebrate women of all shapes and sizes by redefining society's traditional notion of sexy with a powerful core message: ALL women are sexy.

On September 30, 2014, Speedway LLC, closed on its acquisition of Hess’ retail operations and related assets. This acquisition provides Speedway a significant growth opportunity by expanding their retail presence from 9 states to now 23 states throughout the East Coast and the Southeast regions. Over the next three years, Speedway will begin re-branding Hess stores to the Speedway identity, which is scheduled to begin early this year.

We always strive to make our clients proud, but many times we also get to be proud of our clients, and we like to brag about them. Last week Speedway was named in a
Market Force Information study as North America's 5th favorite convenience story. The survey considered a number of factors including fast and reliable service, locations, cleanliness, merchandise selection and many others. Speedway excelled in all categories and came in fifth overall!
The study revealed important information for convenience store chains and franchisees. While price remains a competitive factor, only 26% of respondents marked it as number one. Service and cleanliness ranked higher among consumers than price alone. One criteria made Speedway an out-and-out winner, though. Speedway came in first in the "promotions and discounts" category, which can create loyal customers and brand advocates. The fact that Speedway customers find promotions and discounts (and presumably price) a satisfaction category of importance means that they will be particularly happy to receive gift cards to either begin or continue shopping at Speedway. If your employees are Speedway loyalists, using
Speedway gift cards to promote employee engagement and rewarding a job well done can go a long way in creating trophy value and a lasting impression on your employees.  

CVS Caremark, the parent company to CVS/pharmacy, recently
announced its acquisition of Navarro Discount Pharmacy. 
"The acquisition of Navarro will strengthen CVS/pharmacy's position in the Hispanic marketplace, the fastest growing demographic in the U.S., and we are excited to be adding the Navarro Discount Pharmacy brand to the CVS/pharmacy family," said Helena Foulkes, President, CVS/pharmacy. CVS/pharmacy continues to expand with this acquisition, adding to its now has 7,600 locations nationwide. Navarro customers will also benefit from the Minute Clinic services, bringing urgent health care services into new communities. CVS/pharmacy gift cards are now an even stronger brand to make available to your employees as part of a health and wellness initiative, or rewards through an employee recognition program. Gift cards are useful to employees in any denomination, large or small, which helps fit into an employer's budget for the remaining part of 2014, or as we all begin to look ahead to 2015 planning. With
four options to choose from, CVS/pharmacy corporate gift cards offer a card to fit your program.