What's In Store: Pump & Pantry, Quicklee's, QuikTrip & Rusty Lantern Market
NATIONAL REPORT — The convenience store industry landscape is constantly changing as chains open and close stores each week. On a regular basis, Convenience Store News highlights these comings and goings in this special roundup.
Love's Travel Stops
Love's Travel Stops is now serving customers in Muscatine, Iowa, Patterson, Calif.; and Normal, Ill., after three travel stops opened on Dec. 15. The Muscatine location adds 60 jobs and 29 truck parking spaces to Muscatine County; the Patterson location adds 85 jobs and 91 truck parking spaces to Stanislaus County; and the Normal location adds 110 jobs and 111 truck parking spaces to McLean County.
At more than 9,000 square feet, the Muscatine Love's Travel Stop features a Chester's Chicken and Godfather's Pizza. It also boasts 29 truck parking spaces, 56 car parking spaces, five diesel bays, four showers, laundry facilities, CAT scale, and a Mobile to Go Zone.
At more than 12,000 square feet, the Patterson Love's Travel Stop features an Arby's. It boasts 91 truck parking spaces, 75 car parking spaces, three RV parking spaces, eight diesel bays, eight showers, laundry facilities, a CAT scale, a dog park and a Mobile to Go Zone. The location also includes a Speedco.
The Norman Love's Travel Stop measures more than 14,000 square feet and features a Bojangles. It also boasts 111 truck parking spaces, 82 car parking spaces, nine diesel bays, 10 showers, laundry facilities, a CAT scale, a dog park and Mobile to Go Zone. The location also includes a Speedco.
All three locations are open 24 hours and also offer brand-name snacks and bean-to-cup coffee.
MAPCO
MAPCO celebrated the grand opening of its newest store in Huntsville, Ala., located at 801 Governors Drive SW.
The new 5,600 square-foot store has 16 fueling stations and boasts MAPCO's latest 'Store of the Future' design, featuring an open floor plan and refreshed layout with large windows, tall ceilings, and clean, modern restrooms.
The location offers in-store Pizza Hut Express and an expanded selection of hot foods, cold grab-and-go sandwiches and salads, fresh pastries, nine flavors of ICEE frozen carbonated beverages, Fresh Blends smoothies and freshly ground coffee by the cup from four bean-to-cup coffee brewers.
As part of the grand opening ceremonies, MAPCO unveiled on-site "Fueling Our Future" dedicated gas pumps benefiting the students at Huntsville High School with the company donating 25 cents for every gallon pumped through Jan. 13 to the Panthers' athletic programs, in support of local youth recreation.
"At MAPCO, we are always looking for new ways to give back to the communities where we live and serve," said Frederic Chaveyriat, CEO at MAPCO. "We are honored to celebrate this new store by giving back to local youth recreation."
Prior to and throughout the event, the Huntsville store team collected from customers new and gently used coats of all sizes, which were donated to the Boys & Girls Club of North Alabama for distribution to local families in need of warm garments for the holiday season. This was done in partnership with Celsius Fitness Drinks, who donated 50 coats towards the drive.
Pump & Pantry
Pump & Pantry plans to build a new travel center on the northeast side of Crete, Neb., at the intersection of Nebraska Highways 103 and 33. Construction is expected to begin in the spring.
Pump & Pantry Travel Center will be developed on an eight-acre parcel and will include a 6,500- square-foot store, 16 fueling stations, seven hi-flow diesel lanes and overnight truck parking, as well as reserved truck parking. The store design will mirror the new prototype that Pump & Pantry unveiled in the spring of 2022 at its flagship store in Grand Island, Neb.
The store will include numerous food concepts such as Quiznos, Little Caesars Pizza and Pump & Pantry's Scoops Ice Cream.
"We know Nebraskans and recognize the unique needs of agricultural communities as well as the over-the-road trucking industry," said Charlie Bosselman, president and CEO of The Bosselman Enterprises, the parent company of Pump & Pantry. "The products and amenities that we're bringing to this market should be valuable resources for our customers in Crete and southeast Nebraska."
QuickChek
QuickChek closed out 2022 by welcoming customers at a new convenience store in Denville, N.J.
The 5,670-square-foot store, which sits at 3150 Route 10 West and Franklin Road, opened its doors on Nov. 29. The location features the retailer's "Fresh to Go" interior layout designed to enhance the shopping experience, according to QuickChek. More than half of the new store is dedicated to freshly prepared food and beverages, including QuickChek's fresh brewed hot and iced coffees.
Quicklee's
The newly remodeled Quicklee's Lyons store, located at 9 NY-31 in Lyons, N.Y., reopened for business. The former Jim's Mobil Station, acquired by family-owned and -operated Quicklee's Convenience Stores in 2021, temporarily closed at the end of August to accommodate the renovations.
"We are excited to once again be open, and servicing the Lyon's NY community," said Ken Perelli, Quicklee's vice president and chief operating office. "This store has served the community for so long, and now as one of our 30 locations it will continue to do so, but with a fresh new look and many more options."
Remodel efforts gave the c-store a new exterior facade to match other Quicklee's locations that have opened in recent years, updated the fuel canopy to showcase Quicklee's branded fuel and refreshed the car wash.
The interior of the store features Quicklee's branding, messaging, colors, and new flooring. The layout allows for more product offerings and a space for a quick-service food partner. At this time no co-brand partner has yet to be confirmed for the location, but several are reviewing the space, according the retailer.
"It's important to us that we find a food partner who understands the community and is prepared and capable of providing exceptional service the area deserves," Perelli said. "We invested in this space, and expanded it to allow for a food partner because we believe the community would benefit from more options. Our team is working hard to fill that space and hope to do so in the very near future."
QuikTrip
QuikTrip (QT) opened a new remote travel center in Brunswick, Ga, in mid-December. The opening follows two new recent QT travel centers, in Opelika, Ala., and West Monroe, La., making this the 10th travel center location the company opened across the country this year.
The travel center at 90 Pilot Lane in Brunswick features a larger designed lot and a more spacious store than a traditional QT. Notably, it has room to service 20 cars for gas and six diesel bays for trucks.
The Brunswick location offers the full line of QT snackles, including freshly brewed coffee and fresh-brewed QTea, as well as its complete menu of grab-and-go items like fresh donuts, salads, wraps, QT's signature pizza by the slice and roller grill items. It also features an expanded QT Kitchens location, offering fresh, made-to-order food, premium specialty drinks and frozen treats.
Rusty Lantern Market
Rusty Lantern Market held an official ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of its new store in Providence, R.I. Located at 38 Pleasant Valley Parkway, this is the 23rd of 25 stores in the convenience store roster.
"We are very excited to now be part of the Providence community," said Manager and CEO John Koch. "Expanding our Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts footprint into Rhode Island not only further establishes our brand, but, hopefully, demonstrates our commitment to being an exceptional go-to resource for fuel, great food, drinks, and convenience items. We take our service to the community in this way very seriously."
Rusty Lantern Market focuses providing clean, bright and well-tended facilities; fresh made-to-order and grab-and-go food; an assortment of hot and cold beverages, including barista, freshly ground coffee, juices, teas and frozen drinks, and local and craft products, according to Koch.
The Providence location also features electric vehicle charging stations.
Thorntons
Thorntons welcomes customers at its newest Ohio store in Symmes Township on Dec. 13.
The 4,400-square-foot convenience store is set on 1.5 acres and features a number of amenities to serve our on-the-go guests, including: self-checkout; LED lighting; freshly made burritos and sandwiches prepared throughout the day in the store's onsite kitchen; a variety of top-of-the-line beverages, including fresh bean to cup coffee and ice-cold fountain beverages with nugget ice; and 14 auto fueling positions.
The retailer hosted a grand opening and ribbon cutting celebration on Dec. 16 at its first c-store in the township. The company now operates a total of 17 stores in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area.