NACS announced its Convenience Retail Awards Asia-Pacific winners during the 2025 NACS Convenience Summit Asia, which took place 25-27 February in Tokyo.
The awards highlight standout retail store design, exceptional industry leadership, progressive sustainability initiatives and effective technology innovations, providing one of the greatest benchmarks of global convenience retailing excellence.
“Industry progress is not only driven by innovative companies, but by the energies, determination and inspiration of the individuals who lead them,” said NACS President and CEO Henry Armour.
“These awards recognise and honour the contributions of successful and influential industry leaders who represent excellence, dedication and influence in the convenience retail community.”
NACS Convenience Retailer of the Year Asia-Pacific: Tops Daily Laguna Village
Tops Daily Laguna Village is a small-format brand by Central Food Retail, a leading food retailer in Thailand.
In 2024, the company launched a new hybrid store concept called Tops Daily X Tops Wine Cellar at its Laguna Village location in Phuket, Thailand. The hybrid model combines a traditional convenience store with a dedicated section for wine and chilled beer and features wines from 13 countries, with on-site chillers to quickly chill room temperature beer and wine for customers.
The Wine Cellar features an in-store wine specialist who helps customers with selections and comfortable seating where customers can relax and enjoy their drinks and food. The concept has changed Tops Daily from a traditional convenience store to a spot to also relax and socialise. In the six months after it was launched, sales at the store exceeded projections by 37%.
NACS Convenience Retail Technology Award Asia-Pacific: GS25
Operated by parent company GS Retail in South Korea, GS25 is the top convenience store brand in the country and has been named “Korea’s Most Respected Company” for 16 consecutive years.
The company’s smart store format, called GS25 DX Lab, is a 190sqm space that relies completely on AI. Customers can purchase products through facial recognition software and receive information on wine with the touch of their palm, as well as view customised advertisements through AI sensors that recognise a person’s gender and age.
2025 NACS Convenience Retail Sustainability Award Asia-Pacific: uSmile
Headquartered in Beijing, China, there are nearly 20,000 uSmile convenience stores throughout the country. PetroChina uSmile’s approach to sustainability is focused on reducing the environmental impact of its service station operations.
In 2024, uSmile treated 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxides and cut CO2 emissions by 100,000 tons. By the end of 2024, uSmile built 2000 new EV charging stations with 30,000 chargers, bringing the total to 4,000 EV charging stations with 59,000 chargers. The company’s charging volume reaches 600 million kWh.
To promote multiple energy supplies, PetroChina introduced and expanded its network of alternative fuels, including LNG, hydrogen, EV charging and battery swap. By 2024, PetroChina had built 1,400 new photovoltaic (PV) stations and now operate 3,000 PV stations in China. PetroChina is also focused on using water and other resources more efficiently throughout its operations, as well as improving its environmentally friendly private label products by reducing bottled water usage in corporate offices.
NACS Convenience Industry Leader Asia-Pacific: U-Ming Tan
Mr Tan is Co-CEO and Executive Director of 7-Eleven Malaysia, the largest convenience store operator in the country, with over 2400 stores. In 2021, the retailer debuted its 7CAFÉ concept, combining a convenience store and cafe in one location, offering seating for customers to enjoy ready-to-eat meals, snacks, coffee and desserts. More than 550 stores already have the concept, which features locally sourced, fresh ingredients.
