THREE RIVERS – CST Brands celebrated the grand opening of
its largest Corner Store to date and its 1,033 store in the United States,
which is located in Three Rivers, Texas, a bustling agricultural and oil field
community in the Eagle Ford Shale.
At 10,100 square feet, the Travel Center features a Subway,
indoor and outdoor dining, extra-large restrooms, two ATMs and a beer cave.
Additionally, the store has E85, 10 gasoline dispensers and six high-speed
diesel dispensers as well as ample parking for big rig trucks, cars and
motorcycles.
The new Corner Store will serve as a pit stop between San
Antonio and Corpus Christi, breaking up a long stretch of empty highway and
providing a much-needed respite for travelers and oil industry workers to fuel
up on food, drinks and gasoline.
“The demand for a store in this area is huge,” said Kim
Bowers, president and CEO of CST Brands. “Oil field workers often come to
Corner Store three times a day to grab kolaches and coffee for breakfast, a
sandwich for lunch and a beverage on the way home. At CST, we are all about
making people’s lives easier.”
“The Eagle Ford Shale is transforming South Texas and
providing many challenges in its path. Traffic, roads, housing and convenience
services are in great demand,” said Jim Huff, Live Oak County Judge. “The new
Corner Store helps meet those demands and provides employment in a sustainable
business.”
The store offers a broad array of convenience merchandise,
beverages, snacks and fresh food, as well as Corner Store’s own signature
items, including kolaches, whoopie pies, cookies and donuts baked fresh in the
store, breakfast tacos with homemade tortillas, grilled sausages and all-beef
hot dogs with white or wheat buns, fresh-cut fruit and salads.
In addition to Fresh Choices baked and packaged goods, the
store will carry U Force energy and sport drinks, Cibolo Mountain coffee, FC
bottled soda, Flavors2Go fountain drinks and ICEES.
Donald Hunt, a team member with CST, will serve as store
manager. The Three Rivers location is CST’s 627th store in Texas. Hunt expects
the store to create 50 additional jobs in the region and is still hiring for a
number of positions.
With nearly 1,900 sites in the United States and Canada and
$13.1 billion in revenues last year, CST is the second-largest publicly traded
fuel and convenience merchandise retailer in North America.
In the U.S., CST’s Corner Stores sell Valero fuels and a
line of 185 signature products. In Canada, CST is the exclusive provider of
Ultramar fuels and its Dépanneur du Coin, and the Corner Stores sell signature
Transit Café coffee and pastries.
In the coming year, CST plans to build 15 brand new stores
in the U.S., adding to its network of stores throughout Texas, Louisiana,
Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Arizona and California. More
than half of CST’s U.S. stores are located in Texas.
CST plans to focus on building new, larger stores with ample
parking, colorful and spacious design, and a wider variety of food options. In
2012, CST sold more than 4 million kolaches and 1.3 million whoopie pies baked
fresh in its U.S. stores.