'Rising tides lift all ships:' Amanda Gun-Munro joins the Convenience Industry Council of Canada team

For Canada’s convenience store channel, the line between government relations and commercial success is blurring faster than ever. From navigating contraband tobacco and beverage alcohol deregulation to preparing for the electric vehicle transition, store operators face a rapidly shifting operational landscape.

In turn, the Convenience Industry Council of Canada (CICC) is adding a new member to its team as it ramps up advocacy and work around the channel's biggest issues: Amanda Gun-Munro joins as senior vice-president of public affairs and partnerships.

Gun-Munro has spent her career in and around the industries CICC represents, starting in grocery and regulated retail at the Beer Store and LCBO. She most recently served as global vice-president of communications at Fix Network, overseeing reputation and stakeholder strategy for more than 2,000 locations in 15 countries. Previously, she held senior roles at National Public Relations and Media Profile, where she led communications for FIGR Cannabis during the legalization process. With two decades of experience advising organizations in the alcohol, cannabis, consumer goods and automotive sectors, she brings a store-level understanding of policy decisions to CICC’s government and public relations efforts.

Convenience Store News Canada recently met with CICC’s new SVP to discuss her new role, as well as the issues, trends, opportunities and policies shaping the channel. 

According to Gun-Munro, the key to mastering these policy shifts lies in breaking down the traditional silos between public affairs and vendor-retailer relations. 

"I think priority wise, tobacco and beverage alcohol do become some of our largest files," Gun-Munro said. "But at the same time, our purpose here at the Convenience Industry Council of Canada is to make sure that our members and our stakeholders are operating in a fair and equitable space with the opportunity for growth and success."

Strengths in supply chain alignment

Aligning manufacturers, vendors and store owners gives the sector more leverage with governments despite varying provincial rules.

"There's strength in alignment across our member network and there's a lot of opportunity to showcase how all of them really work together well to bring these essentials to communities," Gun-Munro notes, adding that there is "a lot of opportunity for a little outside-of-the-box thinking as it comes to partnerships and how that pairs with the public affairs side of things."

Building unified advocacy ensures smaller suppliers and independent operators benefit from the reach of major national brands.

"While we may spend a larger portion of our time with some of these larger members, the benefits that our individual and our independent members get from that exposure and from that advocacy work really does help to strengthen the network," Gun-Munro adds. "They're always a focus of everything that we're doing at the end of the day."

Foodservice and EV infrastructure as growth drivers

Looking at long-term commercial runway, expanded prepared food offerings and healthier options represent significant growth drivers for convenience retailers.

"The one competitive advantage that convenience stores have over most other retailers that don't have to be open all the time. We're at your convenience," Gun-Munro emphasizes. “We're open most hours of the night. We're there for the folks during the day, but also the folks that are on a night shift; If they want to grab a meal or something to eat that's relatively healthy, that makes it a lot more inclusive to everyone and gives people better choices at their fingertips.”

That round-the-clock availability aligns directly with emerging trends in vehicle electrification and changing consumer dwell times.

"As people start to move into electric vehicles and need to stop and actually spend some time somewhere where they need to power up their car, it's nice to have the option to sit down and enjoy yourself in an environment where you feel safe and comfortable while you're doing that," Gun-Munro says. "Convenience stores are going to be offering something in that space that most others really can't."

READ: The 2026 foodservice surge and how convenience stores can profit