RICHMOND, Va. — GPM Investments LLC, a subsidiary of convenience-store retailer and petroleum wholesaler ARKO Corp., has entered into an agreement with Quarles Petroleum Inc. to acquire certain assets including 121 branded and 64 contracted cardlock sites in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Fredericksburg, Va.-based Quarles Petroleum is one of the largest fleet fueling cardlock operators on the East Coast, with operations in Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. It services a diverse base of commercial customers across multiple industries at sites along high-traffic corridors at which customers purchase fuel with fleet cards.
“We believe that this high-volume, 24/7/365 business in prime locations cannot be replicated today, and will drive strategic growth,” said Arie Kotler, president and CEO of ARKO. “The acquisition of these assets complements and expands our core wholesale strategy, adding a mature fleet fueling platform and boosting our supply and distribution capabilities within our 33 states and Washington, D.C., fuel supply footprint.”
This acquisition is part of ARKO’s strategic focus on growth and generating long-term shareholder value with its dual convenience and wholesale platform. The company expects that this acquisition will add approximately $17.3 million of adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) on an annualized basis after incremental rent of approximately $7.7 million to be paid to Oak Street Real Estate Capital LLC, the private equity real estate firm that will fund approximately $130 million of the purchase price. The acquisition will add approximately 200 million gallons to the approximately 2 billion gallons ARKO currently sells annually.
“Quarles has focused on building a commercial fleet fueling business with expanded site access, superior quality fuels and fleet card features that provide fleet operators with a comprehensive fueling solution,” said Paul Giambra, president and CEO of Quarles Petroleum.
The companies expect the transaction, subject to conditions, to close during second-quarter 2022.
- GPM isNo. 6 on CSP’s 2022 Top 40 Update to the2021 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count. Watch for the full 2022 Top 202 ranking in the June issue of CSP magazine.
Based in Richmond, Va., ARKO operates in three reportable segments: retail, which includes convenience stores selling fuel products and other merchandise to retail customers; wholesale, which supplies fuel to independent dealers and consignment agents; and GPM Petroleum, which sells and supplies fuel to ARKO’s retail and wholesale sites. GPM operates or supplies 1,406 convenience stores and 1,628 wholesale sites in 33 states and Washington, D.C. Brands include Fas Mart, Shore Stop, Scotchman, BreadBox, Young's, Li'l Cricket, Next Door Store, Village Pantry, Apple Market, Jiffi Stop, Admiral, Roadrunner Markets, Jiffy Food Marts, E-Z Mart, 1 Stop,TownStar, ExpressStop and Handy Mart.
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.