Tucson's Family-Owned Quik Mart Chain Sells Business

TUCSON, Ariz. — Quik Mart Stores Inc. is selling it chain of 17 convenience stores to Southwest Convenience SPE LLC (SWC), a newly formed Delaware limited liability company created for the purpose of acquiring the Quik Mart assets.

Of the 17 stores, 15 are owned by Quik Mart in fee and two are subject to long-term leases. Eleven of the 17 stores sell fuel and all of them but one is branded Chevron.

Quik Mart is a second-generation family business and is the largest independent convenience store retailer in the Tucson market. The company was founded in 1965 by J. Wesley (Wes) Little with the purchase of three convenience stores.

In addition to a wide array of grocery selections, four stores offer made-to-order sandwiches, salads, burritos and pastries as part of Quik Mart's Hungry's Subs and Salads proprietary offering, and three stores offer pizza, chicken wings, hamburgers and other hot foods under the Hot Stuff Pizza franchise.

Quik Mart has earned the title of "Best Convenience Store" by the Arizona Daily Star’s Reader’s Choice Award for the past three years.

"Quik Mart has been a fixture in the Tucson, Arizona landscape for over 55 years, and it was an extremely difficult decision for our family to make. However, after careful consideration of various options over a number of years, we concluded that now was the right time to sell," said Quik Mart President Troy Little.

"We have been working with Denny Ruben and his colleagues at NRC Realty & Capital Advisors for a number of years, and they were instrumental in assisting our family navigate the sale process. As in all transactions of this type, there were a few bumps along the way, but NRC's extensive experience in financial, legal and environmental matters proved to be extremely beneficial to us in resolving all issues and achieving our objectives," he added. "The people at SWC were extremely cooperative and easy to work with and facilitated a smooth transition. We are confident that the stores will be in good hands with SWC, and that they will continue to serve the Tucson community well."

SWC dba Quik Mart is owned by Robert (Bob) Berg, Brett Bishov, Kevin Gandy, CEO of LPT Retail Services, and Akash Chilka. The acquisition will provide an ideal platform to expand in the Tucson metropolitan area, according to the company.

"My partners and I have diverse complementary skill sets from a leadership, capital markets and 'best in class' operational systems and controls perspective, which will serve us well in our efforts to enhance a great business and continue to be positive contributors to the Tucson community," noted Bishov, principal of SWC. "My partners and I are impressed with Troy and the outstanding Quik Mart team that he has built; we're truly honored to continue the amazing Quik Mart legacy."

SWC is a convenience store operator focused on small to midsize metropolitan markets throughout the United States. SWC and its principals have operational experience including more than 3,600 locations and capital markets experience in excess of $7 billion.