Around the World in 6 Couche-Tard Acquisitions

LAVAL, Quebec -- “Fiscal year 2017 will be a year of integrating and learning” for Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., president and CEO Brian Hannasch said during the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter and year-end 2016 earnings call, touting the chain’s assimilation of and application of best practices from several of the chain’s major acquisitions around the world in fiscal 2016.

“This quarter, we celebrated the expansion of our European network to Ireland and further strengthened our presence in Denmark,” he said. And referring to The Pantry and global rebranding process, he said, “We have begun to see the landscape change in the United States as hundreds of signs bearing our global Circle K brand lit up our stores, welcoming our customers in the Southeast.”

“We also very much look forward to completing our acquisition of the Esso-branded Imperial Oil locations in Ontario and Québec, which should be finalized during the first half-year of fiscal 2017. As a united global brand, we will be stronger than all our individual brands combined. We will benefit even more from our scale, international presence and expertise,” he continued.

Click through to take the "world tour."

In February 2016, Couche-Tard expanded its European network in Ireland. Topaz, Ireland's largest convenience fuel retailer, is made up of 464 locations, with a commercial fuel operation of more than 30 depots and two terminals. “It's among the best in the industry in Europe when it comes to foodservice, and has a strong position in the Irish fuel market, and we have control over the entire fuel value chain, which allows us to capture a range of synergies in both wholesale and retail,” said Hannasch.

“In March, after nearly 15 years of looking for the right opportunity here in Canada, we concluded an agreement to acquire Imperial Oil's Esso-branded network in Ontario and in parts of Quebec,” Hannasch said. “As I said when we announced the deal, I view this as a ‘crown jewel’ of convenience retailing in Canada, one of the most well-developed and best-run networks we could add to our own.”

He continued, “Adding Imperial sites to our network strengthens our offering in Ontario and particularly in the GTA, the Greater Toronto Area. It reinforces our network here in the Greater Quebec Area and enhances our visibility on high-profile corners across both provinces. In addition, this deal brings together three strong brands—Couche-Tard, Esso and Tim Hortons.”

On May 2, Couche-Tard closed on an agreement to acquire Shell's downstream retail business in Denmark. "With this transaction, totaling 483 stores, our network has a leading position in the country. Combining these assets couldn't have come at a better time as we begin to rebrand our Danish operations from Statoil to Circle K, and also the Shell Automate network to our Ingo brands,” Hannasch said.

Couche-Tard recently reached an agreement to purchase 23 company-operated sites in Estonia from Sevenoil. “This acquisition will be a great complement to our existing network in the Estonian market, growing it by 40%,” said Hannasch. “It's a small market, but they are great customers, and we have a great brand presence in the market. So, it's a nice addition, and it will be a strong contributor for us.”

Earlier this year, Couche-Tard made several smaller (for Couche-Tard) but still notable acquisitions, including Texas Star and its affiliates from Tiger Tote Food Stores and from Kocolene Marketing. These acquisitions and other separate single-site transactions represented a total of 210 stores for the fiscal year.

Gonzales, Texas-based Cinco J Inc., dba Johnson Oil Co., and Tiger Tote Food Stores Inc. sold Tiger Tote's 21 The Tote convenience stores and Johnson Oil’s 182 dealer locations to Circle K in June 2015.

Kocolene Marketing LLC, Seymour, Ind., sold its 14 Fast Max Convenience Stores to Circle K in September 2015.

Also in fiscal 2016, Couche-Tard completed the construction and relocation or rebuilding of 93 additional sites. Overall, it added 867 sites to its network through acquisitions and new openings.

Laval, Quebec-based Couche-Tard’s network comprises 7,888 convenience stores throughout North America, including 6,490 stores with fuel. Its North American network consists of 15 business units, including 11 in the United States covering 41 states and four in Canada covering all 10 provinces. In Europe, Couche-Tard operates a broad retail network across Scandinavia, Ireland, Poland, the Baltics and Russia through 10 business units. As of April 24, it comprised 2,659 stores, most with fuel. Nearly 1,500 stores are operated by independent operators under the Circle K banner in 13 other countries or regions worldwide (China, Costa Rica, Egypt, Guam, Honduras, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam). These bring Couche-Tard’s total network to close to 12,000 sites.