Buc-ee's Sets Its Sights on Mississippi as Next New Market

LAKE JACKSON, Texas — The Magnolia State will soon have another convenience store operator to shop.

Texas-based Buc-ee's is set to invest $50 million into its first-ever Mississippi store. The 80,000-square-foot store will be located at the exit off Menge Avenue and Interstate 10, reported WLOX.

The Harrison County Board of Supervisors agreed on July 6 to invest an additional $15 million into infrastructure at the location to help support the new Buc-ee's. Improvements will include expanding Menge Avenue from two lanes to five lanes, and lengthening the ramps entering and exiting the interstate at Menge Avenue to handle the expected traffic increase.

The resolution noted that the northwest corner of the interchange is approximately 185 acres of undeveloped land while the southeast corner has rail access running through around 53 acres, according to the report.

The closest location to south Mississippi currently is the Buc-ee's located in Robertsdale, Ala.

The project is expected to be complete in two years. The first Mississippi Buc-ee's will employ 200 associates.

The move into Mississippi marks another step in Buc-ee's multi-state expansion across the South. The retailer recently broke ground on its first Tennessee site after welcoming customers to recently opened locations in Florida, Georgia and Alabama. Buc-ee’s also broke ground on its first Kentucky location in April. Its first travel center in South Carolina is under construction and is on track to open next year, as Convenience Store News previously reported.

Based in Lake Jackson, Buc-ee's continues to operate 38 locations in Texas, where it was founded almost four decades ago.