Amy Lane – Senior Vice President of Special Project (left) and Heather Davis – Director of Foodservice (right)
SAVANNAH, Ga. (May 4, 2021) – Parker’s — a nationally acclaimed convenience store company and food service leader that was named the 2020 Convenience Store Decisions Chain of the Year — recently announced that the company’s Senior Vice President of Special Projects Amy Lane and Director of Foodservice Heather Davis have been named Top Women in Convenience by industry-leading publication Convenience Store News. Lane and Davis are part of an elite group of 74 female industry professionals who will be honored at the 2021 National Association of Convenience Stores show on Oct. 6 in Chicago.
Lane and Davis are part of the eighth annual class of Top Women in Convenience, the first and only convenience store industry awards program that recognizes women making outstanding contributions to their companies and to the industry. The honorees are divided into four categories, including Rising Stars, Mentors, Senior Level Leaders and Women of the Year.
After reviewing hundreds of nominations, Lane was chosen as one of 11 professionals honored in the Mentors category, which recognizes women who have had an extraordinary impact on the careers of their colleagues. This is Lane’s second time being honored as one of the Top Women in Convenience, as she was named to the program’s inaugural class of Senior Level Leader honorees in 2014. Davis was selected as one of 27 Rising Stars, who are women making their mark on the c-store industry in the early stages of their careers.
“At Parker’s, we’re proud to have a diverse workforce with talented women who are making a major impact on store operations, food service, construction, training and many other strategic areas,” said Parker’s founder and CEO Greg Parker. “Amy stands apart an industry veteran and people-first leader with a passion for mentoring the next generation. She originally joined Parker’s when she was 15 and has mentored more than 100 team members throughout her 38-year career. Heather is a true foodservice leader who is always looking for ways to improve the customer experience. Amy and Heather have both been instrumental in growing Parker’s into the successful company it is today and are extremely deserving of this recognition.”
As the Senior Vice President of Special Projects, Lane is a core member of the Parker’s executive team who oversees construction projects and environmental compliance. She also serves as a dedicated mentor to district managers across the company’s corporate footprint. Lane originally joined Parker’s in 1983 and has risen in the ranks from an entry-level customer service representative to a consummate leader whose sphere of influence extends across multiple generations.
In her role as Director of Foodservice, Davis is responsible for foodservice operations across 69 Parker’s retail stores, including 46 Parker’s Kitchen locations, and oversees the Parker’s best-in-class food safety program. Since joining Parker’s in 2017, Davis has expanded the company’s cold grab-and-go offerings, improved menu efficiencies, enhanced recipes and played an integral role in the highly successful launch of the new Parker’s Kitchen Chicken Sandwich.
Since its founding in 1976, Parker’s has grown from a one-store operation in Midway, Ga. to an award-winning company with state-of-the-art convenience stores located throughout Georgia and South Carolina, serving delicious, award-winning Southern-inspired Parker’s Kitchen food that’s made from scratch on-site. Parker’s was recently named the 2020 Convenience Store Decisions Chain of the Year, which is the convenience store industry’s highest honor, and was voted one of America’s top 10 gas station brands by USA TODAY readers. The company also earned a 2020 Tripadvisor Travelers’ Choice Award, which is presented to the top 10% of restaurants across the United States.
Currently celebrating its 45th anniversary, Parker’s has been included on the Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing companies for five years and has been honored by Food and Wine as one of America’s Best Convenience Stores, by The Shelby Report as the Southeast Retailer of the Year and by Convenience Store News as the Foodservice Leader of the Year. The Parker’s Rewards loyalty program, which includes more than 210,000 members, has saved customers more than $15 million to dat
Parker’s stands apart as one of America’s most respected convenience store brands and is known for having the cleanest stores in the industry. The company serves award-winning Southern-inspired food, offers an acclaimed Parker’s Rewards program and gives back to every community where it does business through the Fueling the Community charitable giving program and the Parker’s Community Fund. Parker’s employs more than 1,200 individuals throughout the region and completes more than 125,000 transactions daily.
