COLUMBUS, Ohio—Sheetz is opening its 21st location in Columbus, Ohio, reports NBC4, part of its plan to open a dozen new c-stores each year in the Columbus area through 2025.
During next week’s grand opening, Sheetz will offer free self-serve coffee and soda all day, and there will be a grand opening celebration with a chance of winning free Sheetz for a year.
In honor of the new location, Sheetz will donate $2,500 to both the Special Olympics of Ohio and Mid-Ohio Food Collective. The retailer is encouraging people who attend the grand opening to donate non-perishable food item to Mid-Ohio. Those who donate will receive a Sheetz thermal bag.
Sheetz announced in 2019 that it would expand into Central Ohio and opened its first store in April 2021. Thirteen locations followed, and more are on the way.
Last April, the c-store retailer announced it would expand into Western Ohio by opening about 20 locations in Dayton over the next five years. Sheetz is currently aiming to open its first Dayton store in 2024. Sheetz operates more than 50 locations in Ohio.
In November, Sheetz announced it was expanding into Michigan, opening its first store in Detroit in 2025 with more to come. Sheetz President and CEO Travis Sheetz said that he believes the c-stores "will resonate" with locals and that the company would like to have a "major presence in the entire Detroit metro area" and eventually open 75 stores in the state.
The retailer also announced last year it would open stores in Western Pennsylvania in the next three to five years.
The Pennsylvania-based chain operates more than 670 locations across Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland.
Last month, Wawa announced it’s expanding into the Midwest, including Ohio, in line with its long-term expansion plan to fuel future store growth in adjacent and new markets. These market launches will take place sometime after 2025, with estimated timeframes and ranges for the number of stores by state to be announced in 2023.