RaceTrac Moves Closer to Entering Ohio Market

ATLANTA — RaceTrac Inc. is taking steps to open its first convenience store in Ohio.

On Aug. 2, the Delaware Planning Commission approved a final development plan for a site located north of U.S. Route 36/State Route 37. If the location receives final approval, it will be RaceTrac's first store within the state.

A second RaceTrac store, also located in central Ohio, is currently being planned, reported the Delaware Gazette.

[Read more: RaceTrac Inks Deal for Gulf Oil]

According to planning proposals, RaceTrac plans to build a 6,008-square-foot convenience store with 13 fueling islands outside to accommodate both regular drivers and commercial vehicles. The store's parking lot will have a total of 34 parking spaces.

Conditions for the site's development include RaceTrac constructing an extension of nearby Davidson Lane, providing a total of two northernmost access points for larger vehicles and one southernmost access point for passenger cars.

Brendan Sexton, a representative for RaceTrac, compared the c-store chain to Sheetz, which has also opened multiple stores in the area, during the planning commission's meeting.

"I would benchmark ourselves with Sheetz," Sexton said. "We don't have a made-to-order program that's as robust as them. We're focused on more of an efficient process where you can come in, get what you need and leave. But we do have a hot food order with items that are prepared fresh in the store."

RaceTrac announced last January that it planned to enter Ohio and South Carolina through multiple new build stores.

"RaceTrac believes [central Ohio's] diverse population — along with the growth in commuting and mobile workplaces — is a natural fit for its stores," a RaceTrac spokesperson previously stated. "This expansion into Ohio starts to plant roots further north, and we look forward to becoming a part of this flourishing community."

Founded in 1943 and headquartered in Atlanta, family-owned RaceTrac operates more than 570 convenience store locations in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Tennessee.

It is No. 13 on the 2023 Convenience Store News Top 100 ranking.