Little General Store Inc. Acquires Five Sunoco Locations
BECKLEY, W.Va. -- Locally based convenience store chain Little General Store Inc. has grown its holdings with the acquisition of five Bandy’s Sunny Spot Sunoco locations. The stores are in Beckley, Marmet, Oceana, Hico and Calvin, W.Va.
Brian Waugh, director of retail, told CSNews Online the deal closed last week, with Little General Store taking over two stores on Dec. 1, one store on Dec. 2 and the final two stores on Dec. 3. The company did not disclose the deal’s price tag.
"These stores are located in our geographic region," Waugh said in an interview with CSNews Online. "We have a couple of stores in some of these towns now. We are new to others, and we thought they would be a good fit." He added the stores were also attractive to the company because they have a good relationship with their communities. "We are very excited to bring them on."
According to Waugh, the newest Beckley addition is located next to an existing Little General Store. The company plans to demolish the newest one and rebuild. Once finished, Little General Store will combine the two stores, he explained.
As for the other four stores, Waugh told CSNews Online long-term plans include adding a branded foodservice program to each. In addition to c-stores, the company is also a franchisee for 29 Subways, five Arby’s, 14 Godfather’s Pizzas, five Taco Bells, two Steak Escapes, seven Burger Kings, three Krispy Krunchy Chickens, 12 Sam’s Hot Dog Stands and the 79er Restaurant off Interstate 79 in Burnsville.
"We have a lot of options," he added.
Little General store currently has two new stores under construction, located in Harts and Weston, W.Va., and the company plans to begin construction on three more next year. Those c-stores are the newest ones in Beckley, one in Pineville and another in Elkins, all in W.Va., Waugh explained.
"As far as acquisitions go, we are always examining anything that fits our model," he said. "And with any acquisition we look to add a foodservice program."
In the 80 Little General Store locations open today, approximately 60 percent have a foodservice program and all but approximately five have gas pumps, Waugh added.