DICKINSON, N.D. --Convenience store entrepreneur Jared Scheeler, who honed his retail craft at Bobby & Steve's Auto World in the Twin Cities, is returning to his home town of Dickinson, N.D., to launch The Hub, his new c-store venture.
Scheduled to opening in October, The Hub promises to be a destination food stop for the booming fracking town.
"I hold Bobby & Steve's Auto World in the highest esteem, and many of my closest friends come from that company," Scheeler told CSP magazine. "That being said, I have strong entrepreneurial DNA, and over time I figured that my penchant for growth, continuous improvement and being an elite retailer could best be realized if I branched out on my own."
He said that along with having roots in the community, the reason he chose to locate his c-store in Dickinson is "the unique business opportunities in the thriving Bakken oil play of western North Dakota."
Dickinson sits on the Southern tip of the Bakken formation, which stretches into eastern Montana and Canada. There are oil rigs and fracking activity within the city limits, as well as scattered throughout the immediate region.
Scheeler is fully committed to competing against some well-established players in the "extremely loyal" region such as Kum & Go and Holiday Stationstores.
He said foodservice is the key to the concept's success; he believes the region's customers are not used to finding quality food in a convenience store and hopes to change that perception among the area's core customer--oil and gas industry workers. Scheeler's challenge will be to satisfy that demographic as well as offer the healthier options that many in the c-store industry are now providing.
Along with coffee, fountain, fresh bakery, sandwiches, wraps and take-home meals, The Hub will offer Godfather's Pizza. Scheeler hopes to make it a breakfast and dinner destination. He will also open a Schlotzsky's Deli--he expects it to capture much of the local oil-well lunch traffic--and Cinnabon Express with a direct connection to the store.
For how, he is busy forging relationships with the community. As he gets closer to the opening, he will launch a "full-scale marketing campaign" that will lead up to a grand opening of Schlotzsky's Deli and Cinnabon, followed by The Hub's dedicated grand opening.
For more, see the July issue of CSP magazine.
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