PHOTO GALLERY: Maverik Celebrates Opening of 300th Store

SPOKANE, Wash. — Maverik Inc. achieved its long-pursued goal of operating 300 convenience stores with the opening of the milestone location in Spokane on July 27.

At just shy of 5,000 square feet, the 300th store — one of the company's current prototype stores — fulfills an ambition that has been decades in the making, according to Maverik Chairman of the Board and Chief Pathfinder Tom Welch.

"It's been 20 years," Welch told Convenience Store News. "Our long-term goal was Maverik No. 300."

Other Maverik stores celebrated the milestone with balloons, special cakes and other festivities. "We left it up to them what they wanted to do," noted Welch. 

Members of the Spokane community were invited to celebrate Store No. 300's grand opening, which featured music and a climb wall in the parking lot. Maverik CEO and Chief Adventure Guide Chuck Maggelet and his wife Crystal attended and joined in the adventure by making a climb together.

The Spokane event also featured samples of Maverik's prepared food, which is an important focus for the company, Welch said. The chain's foodservice offerings include fresh pizza, sandwiches, cookies and more, including Cinnabon at many stores.

The company is placing "a real emphasis on fresh," Welch said. As Maverik has no commissary, "all food is made in each of the stores."

The 300th location is not the first of Maverik's "adventure stores" to open, but the company plans to use the format for future new-build stores. Over the last four years, it has remodeled about 100 stores to move them from Maverik's country store format to the adventure store design and layout.

The c-store chain's current schedule calls for opening 25 to 30 new locations each year, and to continue remodeling locations that still have the old format.

"We want all stores to be Adventure's First Stop," Welch said, although new builds in smaller towns will be smaller models.

At Maverik's current rate of growth, Welch estimates that the company will reach its 400-store milestone in the next four to five years.

Salt Lake City-based Maverik currently operates its 300 convenience stores across 10 states.

Click on the images below to see highlights from the grand opening.