Amy Wood
Amy Wood, Director of Enterprise IT
Friendly Express, Inc.
Amy Wood is the Director of Enterprise IT at Friendly Express, a locally owned convenience store chain headquartered in Waycross, Georgia. With 38 locations across Southeast Georgia, Friendly Express is known for its commitment to fast, friendly service, quality food offerings, and embracing technology to enhance the customer experience.
Amy brings over 25 years of experience in retail technology and operations, previously serving in leadership roles at Flash Foods and Gate Petroleum. She holds a degree in Computer Science from Mercer University and was recognized as one of Convenience Store News’ 2025 Top Women in Convenience.
She enjoys spending time with her family and cheering on the GA Bulldogs and the Atlanta Braves! Go DAWGS! Go BRAVES!
With 16 years of IT technology and petroleum retailing experience, he has been a part of expanding the company outside Amarillo, increasing the company’s security, and improving the technology processes for Toot ’n Totum.
He is excited to be working at such a pivotal time for the company during their expansion south of Amarillo. Rance serves on the Executive Board for Toot ‘n Totum, Verifone Petroleum Advisory Council, Acumera Client Advisory Board, and is a member of Conexxus. Other areas of interest include PCI Compliance, Data Security, Point to Point Encryption (P2PE), Internet of Things, Smart Safes, Surveillance Systems, Blockchain/Cryptocurrency, AI Applications in business, self-checkout systems, Cloud Hosting, automation, and any other technology that can help his company succeed.
Rance has been married to love of his life, Megan, for 13 years. They enjoy every minute raising their 5-year-old son Tripp. They enjoy hunting, fishing, camping, music, soccer, hockey, gardening, cooking, training their field bred Golden Retriever Poppy, and attending church with their friends and family.
Nicolas Wignall
Nicolas Wignall, Director of Strategic Accounts
Upside
Nick Wignall is the Director of Strategic Accounts at Upside, a digital marketplace transforming how brick-and-mortar retailers drive measurable profit. With four years at Upside and over a decade of leadership in the consumer goods and energy sectors, Nick specializes in turning complex retail challenges into scalable growth opportunities.
Prior to joining Upside, Nick spent 10 years at Altria in various leadership capacities, including Southeast Region Manager for Industry Engagement. This background in sales analysis, team leadership, and industry advocacy allows him to navigate the intricate needs of enterprise stakeholders with a data-driven, merchant-centric perspective. Nick holds a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Iowa State and an MBA from Tennessee Tech. Nick has previously served on the Board of Directors at other CPG associations throughout the Southeast; including Florida Association of Wholesale Distributors (FAWD), Georgia Association of Convenience Stores (GACS) and Alabama Wholesale Distributors Association (AWDA).
Rance Wells
Rance Wells, VP of IT
Toot’n Totum
Rance Wells is the Vice President of IT for Toot ‘n Totum Food Stores LLC. Toot ‘n Totum has enjoyed much growth over the last several years as one of the largest privately owned employers in the Amarillo area. The company, founded in 1950, consists of 87 convenience stores, 8 full service car washes, 11 car care centers, 6 Wendy’s Quick Service Restaurants, 3 Mitch’s Texas Style BBQ Quick Service Restaurants, and 2 Which Wich Sandwich shops with a Team Member count of over 1,300. Toot’n Totum has 63 locations in Amarillo, Texas and has expanded to 24 other locations in the Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and other towns in the Texas Panhandle.
A 2005 graduate of West Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science degree, Rance began his career with Toot ‘n Totum in 2001 as a store Team Member, working his way through college. He moved out of the stores and joined the IT Support Team from 2006 – 2013. Rance took over as Director of IT in 2013 and promoted to Vice President in 2022. His experience has given him a unique perspective when it comes to end user experience, speed of service, and directly engaging guests.
With 16 years of IT technology and petroleum retailing experience, he has been a part of expanding the company outside Amarillo, increasing the company’s security, and improving the technology processes for Toot ’n Totum.
He is excited to be working at such a pivotal time for the company during their expansion south of Amarillo. Rance serves on the Executive Board for Toot ‘n Totum, Verifone Petroleum Advisory Council, Acumera Client Advisory Board, and is a member of Conexxus. Other areas of interest include PCI Compliance, Data Security, Point to Point Encryption (P2PE), Internet of Things, Smart Safes, Surveillance Systems, Blockchain/Cryptocurrency, AI Applications in business, self-checkout systems, Cloud Hosting, automation, and any other technology that can help his company succeed.
Rance has been married to love of his life, Megan, for 13 years. They enjoy every minute raising their 5-year-old son Tripp. They enjoy hunting, fishing, camping, music, soccer, hockey, gardening, cooking, training their field bred Golden Retriever Poppy, and attending church with their friends and family.
Scott Smith
Scott Smith, Sr Director of IT
Parker’s
At Parker’s, Smith leads the company in all aspects of technology, including the company’s round-up for charity technology, self-checkout systems, cloud infrastructure, servers, and the efficiency of payment systems, which process more than 125,000 transactions per day. He also ensures that the Parker’s Rewards app is up-to-date and efficiently serving the loyalty program’s 300,000+ members.
Before joining Parker’s in 2021, Smith worked as the Director of Information Technology at convenience and fuel retailer Royal Farms in Baltimore, Md., where he led the IT department’s security, infrastructure, and retail operations initiatives for hundreds of stores across multiple states.
Earlier this year, Smith was named a “Future Leader in Convenience” by Convenience Store He is news for his impressive professional achievements and currently resides in Savannah, Ga.
Emily Sheetz
Emily Sheetz, EVP Strategy & IT
Sheetz Inc.
Emily is the Executive Vice President of Strategy and IT at Sheetz and is responsible for the development of and execution of company strategy, information technology and business insights. Emily is a third-generation family member and one of fifteen active in the business. Emily grew the functions of strategy, innovation and business insights since 2017. She previously held the title of the Director of Talent Development, responsible for all training and leadership development across the company. Emily participated in a leadership rotation program within the company and has held positions in Real Estate, Human Resources, Operations, Store Development and Information Technology. She helped to launch the Sheetz Cafe project. She has also served on the Sheetz Family Council.
Prior to rejoining Sheetz, Emily helped to found Knightsbridge Schools International, a private, for-profit K-12 school in London, an affiliate of Knightsbridge School. She spent five years heading up business development and finance and helped to open schools in Turkey, Montenegro, Columbia and Panama. Emily previously worked for three years at Deutsche Bank in New York in Debt Capital Markets and for a year at Huron Consulting Group. She also has spent time at Sheetz since the age of fifteen, working various functions in marketing, finance and as a salesperson over the years.
Emily holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and her BS in Economics from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She lives in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband Justin and their three children, Felix, Lila and Naomi.
Established in 1952 in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Sheetz, Inc. is one of America's fastest-growing, family-owned and operated convenience store chains, with more than $6.4 billion in revenue and more than 18,200 employees. The company operates more than 580 store locations throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina. Sheetz provides an award-winning menu of M•T•O® sandwiches and salads, which are ordered through unique touch-screen order point terminals. All Sheetz convenience stores are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Recognized by Fortune as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, Best Places to Work for Women, Best Workplaces for Millennials and by Forbes as one of America’s Best Employers, Sheetz is committed to offering employees sustainable careers built on an inspiring culture and community engagement. For more information, visit www.sheetz.com or follow us on Twitter (@sheetz), Facebook (www.facebook.com/sheetz) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/sheetz).
Donnie Rhoads
Donnie Rhoads, Director of Business Development
The Convenience Group, LLC
Donnie Rhoads is Director of Business Development at The Convenience Group, LLC. Based in Southwest Washington, TCG is a collection of community stores that both reflect and serve their individual neighborhoods.
Donnie works to streamline store operations and oversee initiatives for growth, especially when it comes to the implementation of new technology. He is also an avid Seahawks fan and loves to cook.
Anthony Raimato
Anthony Raimato, Store Technology Engineering Lead
Wawa Inc
Anthony Raimato has been with Wawa for 13 years and spent most of his time working with POS systems in all aspects from support to engineering deployments and enhancements. Anthony has spent time working with partners for settlement, mobile integrations, ordering applications, and operations partners to simplify store operations and provide new customer features into stores.
While Anthony is proud of the work his team has performed historically, he is most excited about the future of convenience store technology and how technology can further enhance customer and associate experience within stores.
Nick Peters
Nick Peters, VP - IT
Campbell Oil Company
I am an IT professional with over 20 years experience in the convenience retail field. Starting off my career in operations, I then converted over to the IT side of the industry over 15 years ago.
As a strong believer in technology, I have always been forward-thinking as it comes to the application and practicality of new capabilities. I’m also a supporter of industry collaboration and standardization in an effort to assist with the adoption of new technologies.
