1st Stop

Cantrell Cos. owns and operates the regional chain of 1st Stop convenience stores in Kentucky and Ohio. The company also owns Winchester Wholesale, a food and tobacco warehouse, which supplies c-stores as well as other convenience and grocery stores. Cantrell Refinery Sales & Transportation supplies petroleum products and services to wholesale and retail outlets, quick lubes, auto dealerships and commercial customers.

The average unit is 1,000 to 2,500 square feet but the chain’s market stores are generally on the larger end of the spectrum, allowing for more merchandise and featuring more complete delis. Foodservice is offered in limited-service and self-service formats.

Stores carry a small selection of grocery items, including paper goods, flour, sugar, packaged lunch meats and frozen meals. Milk, cheese and meat are also carried, in addition to fresh vegetables, fruit, meat and frozen packaged foods. Other income includes ATMs, phone cards and lottery tickets.

Source: Convenience Digital Resource Library, Technomic. For benchmarking purposes, store counts are year-end 2017.