PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. -- Two Midwest companies have put a number of stores up for sale. The first company, Open Pantry Food Marts of Wisconsin Inc., is selling off 10 of its 36 convenience stores in a move to invest efforts on new builds.
With the sale of these sites, we will be applying the proceeds into 10 to 30 new sites in the Milwaukee-Madison markets and the strategic growing corridor we have targeted. Open Pantry is implementing elements of our New Berlin award-winning prototype design into many of our other locations and new stores. We are diligently [image-nocss] looking at growth trends or new strategic locations to acquire and apply our up image look to reposition the c-store experience in the minds of consumers. The 10 nonstrategic sites that are up for sale are all strong performers, well-imaged, including eight that are owned and operated by Open Pantry and two that are dealer sites, said President and CEO Robert A. Buhler.
All properties are c-stores with gasoline.
According to Phil Boyd, managing director of The Energy Exchange, Chicago, which is handling the sale, Dealers buying these units have the opportunity to walk into modern convenience stores that are profitable units. For Open Pantry, it is not just about candy, chips and gas anymore. The company is redefining how the c-stores of the future should look as well as operate.
Questions concerning the sale can be directed to The Energy Exchange at (866) 906-7499 or www.energy-xchange.com.
Pleasant Prairie, Wis.-based Open Pantry is a privately held corporation consisting of 33 corporate stores, three franchise stores and 11 dealer locations throughout Wisconsin and northern Illinois.
Separately, petroleum marketing, distribution and convenience store firm The Hartley Co., Cambridge, Ohio, is offering 24 units. The stores are high-volume stores located at prime traffic locations throughout Ohio with concentrations in Cambridge, Canton, Columbus, Dayton and Steubenville, as well as Ohio locations near Wheeling, W.Va.
All 24 stores are owned fee simple by the company and are being sold with the property; 14 stores are currently being company operated, while 10 are dealer-operated; however all of the units are being marketed and sold as company-operated units.
All of the stores offer motor fuel, with half of the stores carrying the flags of such major brands as BP and Shell and the other half markets unbranded fuel under the Starfire Express and Working Man's Friend canopy.
And all of the stores offer traditional convenience items, and while the company-operated stores are not currently offering beer and wine, the company said it believes that a number of licenses are available.
As of the 12 months ended July 2006, the 24 stores sold 23 million gallons of motor fuel, and the 14 currently company-operated units sold $3.8 million of convenience merchandise; 21 of the stores offer lottery and two include car washes.
The sale of these storesthrough a structured sale process to be managed by Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc., Richmond, Va.is governed by formal sale procedures, which are available upon request. Offers can be submitted on individual stores, groups of stores or for all of the stores. All sealed-bid offers must be submitted on or before 5:00 PM ET on Oct. 30, 2006. To receive offering materials and for more information on the stores and the sale process, please visit Matrix's Energy & Multi-Site Retail website, www.matrixcapitalonline.com, and click on the Sale of Ohio Stores link, or contact (410) 752-3833, Ext. 2 or 3.
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