2026 Star Women in Convenience winner: Amber Banford
Amber Banford
Director of merchandising, marketing and loyalty
MacEwen Petroleum | Quickie
How did you get into this business?
At Queen’s University, I worked part-time dressing mannequins and doing displays at the GAP, where I realized the impact fixtures, merchandising and signage could have on the overall customer shopping experience. After almost 25 years planning store layouts, I’m still hooked.
What do you like most about your job?
The variety. I also value the cross-functional nature of the job—working with stakeholders on a range of projects keeps things dynamic.
Biggest career challenge?
Leading through a large-scale rebranding initiative. There were many competing perspectives, and the challenge was turning that into clear, executable store standards. I learned the most valuable insights come from the front line. Store teams understand customer needs and operational realities better than anyone and have a pulse on what can be delivered consistently at store level.
What’s the best career advice you’ve received?
Relationships grow at the speed of trust: That simple line has shaped how I approach accountability for myself and my team.
What excites you most about the future?
The natural transformation from transactional to experiential. We’re seeing a shift toward higher-quality food programs, more intentional and refined store design and the integration of digital and loyalty to create a more seamless customer journey. There’s a lot of opportunity to differentiate.
How do you define yourself as a leader?
I lead from the front, I show up consistently and I expect my team to do the same. We are all human and we are going to make mistakes, but I’m always there to support and recognize them, while stretching them beyond what they think they’re capable of.
Nomination highlights
Amber Banford is an influential leader at Quickie due to her ability to drive innovation, modernize operations and inspire organizational change. Demonstrating exceptional leadership, she successfully built an entirely new marketing team that challenges traditional approaches and introduced a fresh strategic direction for the business. Her emphasis on social media and customer engagement continues to attract new audiences to Quickie stores while strengthening the company’s brand presence in an evolving retail landscape. In addition to leading the marketing department and overseeing promotions and traffic-driving campaigns, she also heads the merchandising department, managing store set-up, fixture procurement and equipment sourcing for the company’s innovative new store designs. Banford is leading the organization’s major loyalty program launch planned for Q3 2026, a large-scale initiative involving nine external partners and stakeholders from every department. Her leadership, organization and passion have kept the project on schedule and on budget, positioning her as a rising expert in convenience retail loyalty programs.
Click here for a full list of the 2026 Star Women in Convenience winners
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