SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Kum & Go LC, fresh off it's acquisition of the 37-store Cody's convenience store chain based in Springfield, Mo., and in the midst of a global economic crisis, plans on building dozens of new stores through the end of next year. "We anticipate 20 to 24 builds per year in 2009 and 2010," Kum & Go spokesperson Meggan Kring told CSP Daily News. "If you average that, it is two per month (every other week) across all [12] states," not including any as-yet unanticipated or unannounced acquisitions.
The country may be in a recession, but [image-nocss] people have not lost their appetite for fuel, snack food and convenience, according to The News-Leader. The West Des Moines, Iowa-based retailer, with more than 430 total stores, is opening a new store in Springfield on Friday, the report said.
"Really, it's our people," company president and CEO Kyle Krause told the newspaper. He was in town to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony at a Kum & Go to officially mark the transition of all southwest Missouri's Cody's stores to the new owner's brand.
"Our people, I think, are doing a great job taking care of customers," said Krause. "We do the best we can with quality products, but it's the people behind the counter who takes care of you."
In its 50th year, Kum & Go is a $2.1 billion company, the nation's fifth-largest privately held c-store chain, Krause said. Bucking downward sales trends in other retail sectors, Kum & Go had the best first quarter this year of any in the company's history, Krause said, doing it, he added, through its products and customer service.
Kum & Go first established stores in southwest Missouri five years ago, and had 34 stores before buying Cody's 37 stores in February. The purchase made Kum & Go the largest convenience store operator in southwest Missouri, the report said. (Click here for previous CSP Daily News coverage.)
Only one Cody's, in Springfield, will close as a result of the move, he told the paper, and his goal is to keep as many former Cody's employees as possible, but they must undergo a screening process as any other new associate would, Krause said. It employs more than 3,600 people, more than 300 through the Ozarks expansion.
Kum & Go has "high employment standards to ensure the ideal customer experience," the company said. All associates nationwide go through the same hiring process. About 50,000 applicants apply online for Kum & Go jobs every year, Krause added.
The company said it expects to have a net increase of 20 jobs in southwest Missouri after the Cody's transition, which added stores in Battlefield, Bolivar, Clever, Fair Grove, Hollister, Joplin, Monett, Neosho, Nixa, Republic, Rogersville, Springfield, Waynesville and Webb City. Kum & Go also assumed ownership of Cody's eight car washes, said the report.
Kum & Go has not been recession-proof, Krause told the Times-Leader. Stores in the West saw a sales downturn mirroring the slowdown in the drilling and natural resources industries. Company sales have also slowed in pockets of the 12-state region where factories or major industries have closed, he said. He has not seen that dip in the Springfield area, he said.
The upside in an economic downturn, however, is the opportunity to acquire existing c-stores. Krause said he's always looking for those, and his company is getting more buyer-wanted calls than it used to. He added, "It's a changed market."
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