SANFORD, N.C. -- The Pantry Inc. said that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire four convenience stores through three transactions. These stores include one in Naples, Fla., the company's fifth store in that market; two in North Carolina; and one in Alabama.
The retailer has also completed the acquisition of 11 c-stores in the Spartanburg, S.C., market from Willard Oil Co. Inc. The stores, which operate under the Fast Phil's banner, generated revenues of approximately $38 million in 2006.
And the company has also [image-nocss] completed the acquisition of a single c-store in Apex, N.C.
The four newly announced acquisitions are subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions and are expected to close in the company's third fiscal quarter. They will be financed with a combination of cash on hand and lease financing. Terms were not disclosed.
These transactions bring the total number of stores that The Pantry has acquired or agreed to acquire so far in fiscal 2007 to 152, it said.
Among those stores were 66 Petro Express c-stores in North and South Carolina acquired from Petro Express Inc.; 24 Sun Stop c-stores in Florida, Georgia and Alabama from Southwest Georgia Oil Co. Inc.; 16 Angler's Mini-Marts in Charleston, S.C.; eight c-stores in Gainesville and Ocala, Fla., from Rousseau Enterprises Inc., which operate under a variety of banners, including LeStore; and several other deals.
Concerning the Fast Phil's deal, Willard Oil vice president William Willard told CSP Daily News when the transaction was announced that he and his brother Ben had actually sought out The Pantry to get the deal moving. My brother and I are in our 60s, and we thought that it was a good time to sell the retail stores, he said, noting that some of the Fast Phil's sites had competed head-to-head with The Pantry, so they knew how The Pantry operated.
The 11 stores generated revenues of approximately $38 million in 2006. They all sell gasoline, branded either BP or Pure; three of the stores feature Quick Chick's fried chicken restaurants on the premises, and three stores offer touchfree car wash service. The chain also added biometric checkout for fuel and merchandise last year through Pay By Touch's BioPay network.
Willard said he and his brother will continue to operate their gasoline-supply business, which serves 14 c-stores beyond the 11 Fast Phil's sites. After 30 years in the c-store retailing business, Willard said, I think it's still a good business, but it is getting evermore competitive, and I believe you need to be bigger and bigger to compete effectively.
The Pantry, Sanford, N.C., is the leading independently operated c-store chain in the southeastern United States and one of the largest independently operated c-store chains in the country, with revenues for fiscal 2006 of approximately $6 billion. As of April 19, 2007, it operated 1,638 stores in11 states under select banners, including Kangaroo Express, its primary operating banner.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.