C-store Chains Make Fastest Growing Cos. List

8/21/2013

NATIONAL REPORT -- Five convenience store retailers were named to the 2013 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies. The list is an expanded online version of the Inc. 500 and ranks companies based on three-year revenue growth. Four of the c-store retailers appeared on last year's list and improved their rankings.

According to the magazine, this year's list measures revenue growth from 2009 through 2012. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2009. Additionally, they had to be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit and independent -- not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies -- as of Dec. 31, 2012.

The minimum revenue required for 2009 is $100,000; the minimum for 2012 is $2 million. Revenue figures given in the company profiles are for calendar year 2012.

The four c-store retailers who made the list are:

No. 1424: Lightning Quick Gas N Go. The Adrian, Mich.-based company operates a chain of c-stores and gas stations. Over a three-year period, the company's revenue increased by 281 percent to $26.5 million in 2012. The company ranked No. 971 on last year's list.
No. 2390. Engineer's Associates. Berkeley, Calif.-based Engineer's Associates owns and operates several franchise and non-franchise gasoline service stations with convenience stores and car washes. The company also provides fuel to several other unbranded service stations. Engineer's Associates saw three-year revenue growth of 151 percent to $26.9 million last year, landing the company on the Inc. 5000 list for the fourth consecutive year. Last year, it ranked No. 1325.
No. 2603: Parker's. Savannah, Ga.-based Parker's made the list again this year, growing in revenue by 135 percent to $256.6 million. The company boasts 345 employees and added 111 jobs over the three-year period. Parker's operates 30 convenience stores across six counties in Georgia and South Carolina and sells its own brand of proprietary gasoline. The company ranked No. 3006 on the 2012 Iist.
No. 3844: Atlas Oil Co. The Taylor, Mich.-based company experienced 74-percent growth in revenue over the three-year period, raking in $1.9 billion in 2012. Atlas Oil supplies fuel to nearly 400 gas stations and convenience stores throughout Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio, and recently introduced a new c-store concept called Earth Market. This year marks the company's return to the Inc. 5000. It last appeared in 2011 at No. 2920.
No. 4052: Kum & Go LC. Appearing for the fifth consecutive year on the list is West Des Moines, Iowa-based Kum & Go. The operator of more than 400 convenience stores in 11 states throughout the Midwest saw its revenue increase by 54 percent over three years to $2.8 billion. The company has 4,589 employees and added 953 jobs over the same period. The company improved its ranking from No. 4268 in 2012.

Companies who made the list this year will be recognized at the 32nd annual Inc. 500|5000 Conference and Awards Ceremony, to be held Oct. 10-12 at the Gaylord National in Washington, D.C.

To see the full 2013 Inc. 5000 list, click here.