Couche-Tard Converts First Holiday Stationstores to Circle K Brand
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. Is bringing the Circle K banner to the Sioux Falls area.
The retail company is converting 12 area Holiday Stationstores to its global Circle K brand. Work has already begun on one convenience store and Couche-Tard expects to complete the rebranding initiative in the area in approximately six weeks.
One c-store, located at 1731 S. Cliff Ave., will be razed and rebuilt at as a new Circle K location. It is slated to reopen this summer.
According to Couche-Tard, the stores' exterior signage is changing; however, the Circle K décor, employee uniforms, products and programs have been in place since it acquired Holiday Stationstores in 2017.
The company acquired the Sioux Falls-area convenience stores from franchisee I-90 Fuel Services in 2020. In that transaction, Couche-Tard acquired 17 Gas Stop Holiday convenience stores and gas stations owned by Tom and Melissa Howes in South Dakota and Minnesota. The Howeses, who owned I-90 Fuel Services Inc. and did business as The Gas Stop, were franchisees of Holiday Stationstores Inc., as Convenience Store News reported in January 2020.
"We're excited to begin a new era in Sioux Falls as Circle K while continuing to build on the proud Holiday heritage in this community," said Gary Brant, vice president of operations for Couche-Tard. "While the name on the building is changing, our commitment to making our customers' lives a little easier every day has never been stronger. Our guests will still enjoy the same products and offerings they've known and loved. And over time, we'll be enhancing their experience with innovative new products and services that Circle K is known for and continues to introduce globally."
The Sioux Falls stores are the first Holiday Stationstores to be converted to the Circle K brand. The company has not set or announced plans for further rebranding efforts beyond Sioux Falls.
In July 2017, Couche-Tard signed an agreement with Holiday Cos. to acquire all the issued and outstanding shares of Holiday Stations Inc. and certain affiliated companies. The Midwest-based Holiday's assets include more than 500 company-operated and franchise convenience stores, a food commissary and a fuel terminal.
Holiday was a privately owned company based in Minnesota and was founded by the Erickson family in 1928.
Of the 522 c-stores, 374 were company-operated and 148 were franchises. It had locations in 10 states: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Michigan and Alaska.
Laval, Quebec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard operates in 26 countries and territories, with more than 14,100 stores. With its well-known Couche-Tard and Circle K banners, it is one of the largest independent convenience store operators in the United States, and it is a leader in the convenience store industry and road transportation fuel retail in Canada, Scandinavia and the Baltics, as well as in Ireland. It also has a presence in Poland and Hong Kong SAR.