Born and raised on a farm in Southern Illinois, Randy joined the United States Marine Corp Reserve after graduating high school. In 1971, while still in the Reserves, he was hired by Martin & Bayley, Inc., as a warehouse worker. Later that same year, he was promoted to Assistant Warehouse Manager and on April 1, 1972, Warehouse Manager

After five years of operating the warehouse, Randy made a bold move to leave the Warehouse Division to become a Store Manager at Huck’s, Martin & Bayley’s C-Store Division. From that moment on, he was hooked on the Convenience Store Industry. Using leadership skills developed in the Marine Corp, Randy started climbing the ladder to success, first as Supervisor in 1978 and then as Regional Director in 1979. In 1989, he was promoted to Vice President of the Huck’s Division covering a five-state area of Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee.

In 1992, Randy was appointed CEO of Martin & Bayley, Inc., and to Chairman in 1998. In March 2001, stockholders of Martin & Bayley, Inc., sold their stock to an ESOP, and as a result, the employees now own 100 percent of the company. During his headship of the company, he implemented many of his own initiatives and programs which led to the company receiving Convenience Store Decisions Chain of the Year Award in 2001 for demonstrating dramatic success in the key categories of product and service quality, marketing and merchandising innovation, operating efficiency, management effectiveness, imaginative development of the c-store concept, and projection of a positive image, profitability and growth.

With military-like execution, the chain’s Total Customer Focus program consistently provided excellence in customer service, and in 2005, the company won CSP’s Customer Outlook Award for Best Customer Service.

The combination of Mr. Fulkerson’s fearlessness with measurement and accountability helped Huck’s become highly profitable and a formidable competitor in its Midwestern markets. Under his direction and guidance,
the company implemented the Balanced Scorecard, a business tool that uses measurements to gauge the performance of individual business units or departments and ensures their objectives are linked to the company’s overall mission; a Labor Matrix Program, labor planners unique to each store based on type of services provided and customer needs by better managing salesper labor hour; Cigarette Matrix which increased cigarette carton sales while at the same time improving gross profit percentage and dollars; and V-Formula for Store Remodels, a method of ranking the stores weighed heavily to real estate and return on investment. In addition, Mr. Fulkerson initiated vertical integration by starting a warehouse and commissary for the chain’s 110+ stores.

A man of honesty and integrity, Mr. Fulkerson has been called “The Great Aggregator” by affiliates in the C-Store Industry. He also developed an Owner/Operator Program which set store managers under an “Owner/ Operator Agreement. The company saw a substantial increase in Profit After Variable Expenses.

NACS Leadership: Mr. Fulkerson is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), member of NACS’ Research
& Development Board Committee, and Past Chairman of the National Convenience Store Advisory Group (NCSAG). He was selected on CSP Magazine’s Top 25 Influentials List for the Convenience Store Industry in 2005.

Industry Activities/Interests: Member of NATSO, Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association, Indiana Petroleum Marketers Association, Missouri Petroleum Marketers Association, and 3-star NACSPAC member.

Additionally, Mr. Fulkerson has exchanged ideas, best practices and strategic information with some of the best convenience store companies in the Nation.

After leaving Martin & Bayley, Inc., in 2007, to move with his family to Mesa, Arizona, Mr. Fulkerson currently is a partner with Convenience Directions/ Info Marketing, facilitates Study Groups for Finance & Resource Management Consultant, Inc., and is owner of ABC Consulting Group.