DUBLIN -- Irish convenience-store operator Applegreen PLC is looking to expand its business in the United States via acquisitions, reports the Irish Independent.
The Dublin-based company, which has grown to a handful of c-store units on the East Coast since entering the U.S. in 2014, is considering a number of potential opportunities to expand here, according to CEO Bob Etchingham.
“We don't anticipate doing anything different in terms of our acquisitions in the U.S. that we have been doing up to this point; we'll adopt a capital light approach,” Etchingham said of any potential acquisition. “We never rule out the prospects of an acquisition coming along that we consider to be attractive and that would allow us to add value. I wouldn't want to rule out any of our options in that regard.”
According to its most recent quarterly results presentation, the company views the United States as a “viable market for expansion,” but specific expansion plans stateside have not been disclosed.
As of the end of fiscal 2016, Applegreen had 243 operational sites across all its markets, the bulk of which are in Ireland and the United Kingdom. In the United States, Applegreen has four convenience stores in Long Island, N.Y.
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