ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Mountain Express Oil Inc. has purchased The Store brand from Team Schierl Cos., which will remain as a partner. The chain consists of 26 convenience stores with gasoline in Wisconsin and Michigan. Mountain Express Oil has a license agreement to use the brand’s name.
Team Schierl Cos. sold The Store buildings and properties to an unnamed real estate investment trust (REIT). Team Schierl owns the equipment, fixtures and inventory. That sale did not affect any store employees.
Mountain Express Oil's goal with the acquisition is to expand the brand within the Northcentral region of the United States, co-CEOs Lamar Frady and Turjo Wadud said.
John “Butch” Schierl established Stevens Point, Wis.-based Team Schierl in 1956 as a home heating oil business. He opened the first The Store location in 1976. His three sons, Tim, Fritz and Bill Schierl currently own the company.
“Two generations of the Schierl family, along with thousands of our dedicated associates, have worked for over 45 years to develop The Store brand and make it successful. We are very proud of the high-quality product we have delivered and the many relationships we have developed along the way. We look forward to transitioning this brand to an organization that will continue to provide our associates with ongoing career opportunities, shares the same values that we have and has the financial strength to grow the brand well beyond our existing capabilities,” said Fritz Schierl.
“We were impressed with The Store’s legacy, and after discussing the acquisition with the Schierls, knew this franchise would be a wonderful addition to our business portfolio. With a commitment to growth and community, the decision seemed natural to our overall vision for Mountain Express Oil,” said Wadud.
Meanwhile, in February, Mountain Express Oil formed a partnership with Long Island, N.Y.-based VM Petro, a wholesale and distributor of petroleum products owned by Manoj Narang.
For Mountain Express Oil, the acquisition of VM Petro was strategic, to continue Frady and Wadud’s vision of growth and development in the Northeast. As part of the partnership, Narang continues to work with Mountain Express Oil on the expansion of VM Petrol in New York.
Narang, originally from India where he was employed as an accountant and lawyer, moved to New York in 1988. He built a successful electronic business in Manhattan from 1999 to 2004. In 1999, he began to purchase gas stations as an investment. This venture was the impetus for the beginning of the wholesale operation, and he purchased a trucking company in 2006. By 2022, the company had acquired 18 locations in Long Island, N.Y.
- Mountain Express Oil is No. 75 on CSP's 2022 Top 202 ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by total number of company-owned retail outlets.
Founded in 2000 and based in Alpharetta, Ga., Mountain Express Oil currently owns or controls more than 330 gas stations and provides fuel to more than 750 stations across the United States under several major oil and regional fuel brands. With a geographic footprint covering 24 states, Mountain Express Oil has relationships with ExxonMobil, BP, Amoco, Shell, Chevron, Texaco, Sunoco, Valero, Gulf, CITGO, Diamond Shamrock, Marathon, Arco, Phillips 66, ConocoPhillips and 76 Motiva.
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