SHEBOYGAN, Wis. -- Through the years, Ryan Oil Co. and Quality State Oil have never really been rivals in the Sheboygan, Wis.-area gasoline and convenience-store market; more like friendly colleagues in competition.
So when Muriel Ryan decided to retire after 33 years in the oil business, she figured it made the most sense to sell her five stores in the area to Quality State, which operates the Q-mart chain, according to a report in the Sheboygan Press.
"It's the end of an era, but I think Quality State has a very good name in [image-nocss] the community, and they're basically locally owned," Ryan, 73, who founded the company in 1974 with her late husband, Don, told the newspaper.
The deal was finalized July 30, and the former Ryan stores are now officially Q-marts, although the signs with the familiar shamrocks have yet to disappear. "The shamrock is going to go back to Ireland," Ryan said with a laugh.
The deal gives Q-mart 22 locations in several cities, including Sheboygan, Sheboygan Falls, Oostburg, Plymouth, Neenah-Menasha, Fond du Lac and Sturgeon Bay. Terms of the transaction were not released.
Greg Bultman, 62, president of Quality State since 1988, said acquiring the Ryans' stores was a good move. The two sides had been talking "off and on" over the past six to nine months about the deal, Bultman told the newspaper.
"The stores are established, they're good stores, they have an excellent customer base, and they fit right into our market," Bultman said.
Even though they basically competed for the same customers --- people looking for a place to pick up a loaf of bread, gallon of milk or to fill up their cars fast --- both Ryan and Bultman said they did so amicably.
"We've always been friends. We have basically carried on a very congenial relationship within the same realm, belonging to the same oil associations and so on," Ryan said. "So you could classify it as competition, but it's been a very congenial, very hospitable type of a relationship."
Bultman agreed. "Quality State tends to be a friendly competitor in all the markets we operate in," Bultman said. "That's kind of the reputation we want to have. We want to be first in line to serve the customer with the lowest and best prices, and we want to be friendly with our competition."
About 45 people worked for the Ryans, with many of them being retained by Q-mart. The former Ryan's stores are already part of the Q-mart Rewards program, which offer customer discounts, Bultman said.
One of the Ryan's stores, the Jefferson Station location, is within a few blocks of an existing Q-mart store, but Bultman said both stores will remain open.
Don and Muriel Ryan arrived in Sheboygan in 1974 to start their business after Don had worked for Standard Oil and Amoco Oil in the Chicago area for more than 20 years.
Don Ryan died in 2002. Son Bob Ryan will continue to operate his own convenience store in Plymouth, Wis., not associated with Ryan Oil or Q-mart.
Muriel Ryan said the sale will help finance her retirement, but she enjoyed running the business. "I love every minute of it," Ryan said. "I love the people, and I love the work and the endeavors. But I feel it's time. The time was right, the buyer was right, and I think it's time to move on and enjoy a little bit of retirement."
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