Speedway Expands With 97-Store Purchase

The new stores acquired in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio signal the continued growth of the company.

June 08, 2012

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Speedway??s acquisition of close to 100 gasoline stations in a three-state area signals the continued growth of the company, the Springfield News-Sun reports. Of the 97 stores in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio, 10 were former Road Ranger and 87 were GasAmerica locations.

Speedway has other signs of advancement with its first-quarter 13% bump in sales over 2011, and continued hiring to replace retiring employees. "It just gives us another presence in the seven states we??re already in and gives us an opportunity to attract more customers to shop in Speedway," said Shane Pochard, spokesman for Speedway and parent company Marathon Petroleum Corp. "It gives us the option to grow in a market we??ve already been successful in."

The new stores will be added to the company??s more than 1,370 locations across seven states. Experts point to the slow economy as the impetus in large convenience store chains buying more locations.

"What??s happened is, when you have an (economic) downturn like we??ve seen these last few years, you can do a fair amount of growth," said Jeff Lenard, NACS spokesman. "For companies looking for long-term growth, now is the time."

Speedway and other similar companies usually stick to buying stores in markets where they already have a presence to saturate the area and lower the per-store cost, said Lenard. This in turn keeps marketing and distribution inexpensive and simple.

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