• Convenience Store News , Monday, April 2, 2012 10:12 AM

Friday night's drawing of the $640-million Mega Millions jackpot drove traffic to convenience stores, and not just in New York. Mega Millions is available in 42 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The lottery traffic is up in a lot of stores," James Calvin, president of the New York Association of Convenience Stores, told the [Rochester] Democrat and Chronicle newspaper. "Convenience stores survive on foot traffic [and] whatever brings people through the door is going to be a plus."

The downside: smaller stores dealing with long lottery lines may lose customers not playing who don't want to wait in line; and stores typically make little profit on lottery tickets, Calvin told the news outlet. 

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