NEW YORK -- Six convenience-store retailers or related companies are among the business named to the Inc. 500/5000 list of America’s Fastest Growing Companies.
The 2012 Inc. 500/5000 list, which will officially be unveiled in the September 2012 issue of Inc., marks the most competitive group of companies in the list's history, according to the publication. To make the cut, companies needed to achieve significant sales growth between 2008 and 2011. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2008, and were required to be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit and independent as of Dec. 31, 2011.
"Now, more than ever, we depend on Inc. 500/5000 companies to spur innovation, provide jobs and drive the economy forward,” saidInc. magazine editor Eric Schurenberg. “Growth companies, not large corporations, are where the action is.”
C-store retailers on the list include:
- No. 971
Lightning Quick Gas N Go, Adrian, Mich.
3-year growth: 332%
2011 Revenue: $18.6 million
2008 Revenue: $4.3 million
Employees: 36
Jobs added, prev. 3 years: 26
Business Model:Operates a chain of convenience stores/gas stations.
- No. 3006
Parker's, Savannah, Ga.
3-year growth: 72%
2011 Revenue: $212.6 million
2008 Revenue: $123.3 million
Employees: 300
Jobs added, prev. 3 years: 50
Business Model:Operates 27 conveniences stores across six counties in both Georgia and South Carolina, and sells its own brand of proprietary gasoline. On the first Wednesday of each month, the company donates 1 cent per every gallon of gas pumps to local community school initiatives and programs.
- No. 3181
Lehigh Gas, Allentown, Pa.
3-year growth: 65%
2011 Revenue: $1.6 billion
2008 Revenue: $986.4 million
Employees: 129
Business Model:Distributes motor fuels (gasoline and diesel fuel) and owns and leases real estate used in the retail distribution of motor fuels.
- No. 3233
Superior Petroleum, Pittsburgh
3-year growth: 63%
2011 Revenue: $288.6 million
2008 Revenue: $177.4 million
Employees: 425
Jobs added, prev. 3 years: 25
Business Model: Sells gasoline wholesale, as well as operates convenience store/gas stations.
- No. 4268
Kum & Go, West Des Moines, Iowa
3-year growth: 29%
2011 Revenue: $2.6 billion
2008 Revenue: $2 billion
Employees: 4000
Jobs added, prev. 3 years: 400
Business Model: Operates a chain of more than 400 convenience stores/gas stations in 11 states throughout the Midwest.
- No. 4450
Plaid Pantry, Beaverton, Ore.
3-year growth: 23%
2011 Revenue: $211.5 million
2008 Revenue: $172 million
Employees: 765
Jobs added, prev. 3 years: 75
Business Model:Operates as a regional chain of convenience stores in Oregon and Washington states, with some incorporating fueling stations or Subway chain restaurants.
Greg Parker, president and CEO of Parker’s said about his company being included on the list, “We’re grateful to our customers for making this honor possible. Their loyalty has helped make us one of the nation’s fastest-growing companies. This honor further validates what our customers tell us every day--that we deliver the ultimate in convenience store products and services at a fair price.”
Click here to see the complete Inc. 500/5000 list.
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