Year in Review: The Most-Read Stories of 2021

NATIONAL REPORT — Readers continued to gravitate toward news on larger convenience store chains' acquisitions, divestments and new initiatives in 2021, with Circle K and 7-Eleven Inc. both appearing in multiple headlines.

News of record-low gas prices during the previous year also caught attention — although those low prices did not last — while Convenience Store News' first in-person Top Women in Convenience Awards ceremony in two years, was a popular read.

These are the top 10 most-read headlines of Convenience Store News Online for 2021, based on website hits:

1. Circle K Announces Sale of 350-Plus Stores in North America
Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., parent company of the global Circle K c-store brand, tapped NRC Realty & Capital Advisors LLC to coordinate and manage the sale of 269 sites across 25 states in the United States and 37 sites across six provinces in Canada. In addition to those planned divestures, Couche-Tard reached an agreement to sell 49 locations in Oklahoma to Casey's General Stores Inc.

2. Speedway Sale to 7-Eleven On Track for Q1 Completion
7-Eleven's $21 billion purchase of Speedway made multiple top headlines for the second year in a row. The acquisition, which eventually closed in mid-May, included approximately 3,900 Speedway c-stores as well as a 15-year fuel supply agreement for approximately 7.7 billion gallons per year associated with the Speedway business.

3. Circle K Launches 'Sip & Save' Subscription Program
U.S. customers can enjoy one daily Polar Pop fountain drink, Froster slushy, coffee or tea of their choice for $5.99 a month. Circle K tested the program for 90 days at more than 100 stores near Augusta, Ga., and Columbia, S.C., prior to its chain-wide rollout.

4. Teamsters Call on FTC to Pause 7-Eleven's Purchase of Speedway
On March 10, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asking the agency to pause its review of Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s sale Speedway to 7-Eleven Inc.'s parent company, Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd. Teamsters President James Hoffa asked the FTC to put the review on hold until either "legislation introduced by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), chairwoman on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights, has been enacted; or the FTC is able to ensure that the legal and economic staffs have meaningfully taken into account the lack of efficiencies and the full range of competitive harms that the transaction may cause."

5. Lower Gas Demand in 2020 Fuels Lowest Gas Prices in Four Years
Early in 2021, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that regular retail gasoline prices averaged $2.17 per gallon in the United States in 2020 — 44 cents per gallon, or 17 percent, lower than in 2019. Gas prices started 2020 at more than $2.50 per gallon; however, the COVID-19 pandemic drove widespread reductions in passenger travel and gasoline demand, contributing to lower gasoline prices across the U.S., EIA explained.

6. Convenience Store News Names 2021 Top Women in Convenience
Convenience Store News named a record 74 female leaders as winners of its eighth-annual Top Women in Convenience (TWIC) awards. The 2021 TWIC program was the most competitive yet, as the number of nominations received more than doubled from 2020. Judges selected five Women of the Year, 31 Senior-Level Leaders, 27 Rising Stars and 11 Mentors to be inducted into the 2021 class of Top Women in Convenience.

7. Buc-ee's Prepares to Welcome Customers at First Florida Location
The Lake Jackson, Texas-based retailer opened its first Florida travel center in April, soon followed by a second site in Daytona Beach. The two Florida outposts continued Buc-ee's multi-state expansion across the South, joining stores in Georgia and Alabama.

8. Wawa Celebrates Opening of Its First Drive-Thru Only Store
The fresh food focused-store, also offers curbside pickup, opened at 549 W. Trenton Ave. in Morrisville, Pa., in January. It came soon after the opening of Wawa's first standard c-store with a drive-thru in Westampton, N.J., continuing the chain's testing of new store concepts and formats.

9. Buc-ee's Adding Another State to Its Footprint
Buc-ee's broke ground on a new travel center in the Richmond, Ky., market on April 13. The first Kentucky Buc-ee's site is located at the southeast corner of Interstate 75 and Duncannon Lane, occupies 53,000 square feet and will offer Texas barbeque, homemade fudge, kolaches, Beaver nuggets, jerky and fresh pastries, in addition to approximately 120 fueling positions.

10. Kwik Trip Leads 2021 Ranking of Top 10 U.S. Gas Station Brands
La Crosse, Wis.-based Kwik Trip took the crown in USA Today's 2021 10Best Reader's Choice Awards. A panel of experts partnered with 10Best editors to pick the initial nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote. Casey's General Stores, Hy-Vee, Rutter's and Sheetz joined in the top five.