SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- As another small retailer chooses to exit the retailing business, The Pantry has found another opportunity for growth.
When the Pantry announced yesterday that it has entered into an agreement to purchase the 11 Fast Phil's convenience stores from Willard Oil Co., Spartanburg, S.C., company vice president William Willard told CSP Daily News 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 [image-nocss] 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.
As reported on a CSP Daily News Flash yesterday, The Pantry Inc. announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the 11 convenience stores in the Spartanburg market from Willard Oil, which at one time had owned and operated as many as 17 stores in Spartanburg, Union and Chester counties in upstate South Carolina.
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.
The Pantry chairman and CEO Peter J. Sodini said in a press release, This strategic acquisition strengthens our market position in South Carolina, where we already operate over 230 convenience stores. It brings the number of stores we have acquired or agreed to acquire so far in fiscal 2007 to 147.
The acquisition, which is expected to be immediately accretive to The Pantry's earnings per share, is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. It is expected to close in the company's third fiscal quarter. The transaction will be financed with a combination of cash on hand and lease financing. Terms were not disclosed.
Meanwhile, 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.
Separately, The Pantry announced that it has completed the previously announced acquisition of a single convenience store in the Myrtle Beach, S.C., market.
Based in Sanford, N.C., The Pantry is a leading independently operated convenience-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 $6.0 billion. As of March 1, 2007, the company operated 1,558 stores in 11 states under select banners, including Kangaroo Express, its primary operating banner.
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