HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Dutch Oil Co. and Victory Marketing LLC, doing business as Sprint Mart, have completed the acquisition of the operating assets of The Spencer Cos. Inc., owner of 31 MinitMan Food Stores. The transaction also includes several dealer locations, numerous unmanned cardlock facilities and fuel transportation assets.
Spencer was founded as a family-owned and operated business in 1923. The Huntsville, Ala.-based company operates convenience stores and distributes gasoline and diesel products in northern Alabama, including the Huntsville and Birmingham, Ala., metro markets.
The acquisition will increase Sprint Mart’s footprint to more than 100 company-operated stores and will enhance its presence in several northern Alabama markets. It will also enable Sprint Mart to bring differentiated offerings, such as Sprint Mart Rewards, Chix and Best Bean Coffee to a broader group of consumers, the company said.
“Sprint Mart’s mission is to be the best convenience and foodservice retailer in the markets we serve,” said Charles Morris, managing partner of Sprint Mart. “For the past few years, we have worked hard to create a unique and personal customer experience in our stores; building customer loyalty that strengthens our business and funds future growth. Adding MinitMan to the Sprint Mart family is a leap forward in achieving our vision of setting the standard by which other convenience stores are measured.”
“The Spencer family has done a tremendous job of building a business that operates with consistently high standards and values its customers and employees,” said Rex Gillis, president of Dutch Oil. “The cultural similarities between our companies cannot be ignored—both reflect a family heritage and strong ‘people culture’—and should allow for an easy transition for employees and customers alike. This is an exciting time for Sprint Mart, and we are thrilled to welcome the MinitMan team into the Sprint Mart family.”
- Sprint Mart is No. 83 on CSP’s 2020 Top 202 ranking of c-store chains by company-operated store count.
Dutch Oil, founded in 1972 in Columbus, Miss., distributes independent and Shell-branded gasoline and diesel products to nearly 70 company-operated and dealer locations in Mississippi and Alabama. Victory Marketing, founded in Ridgeland, Miss., in 2000 as a result of a merger involving Morris Petroleum Inc, Dutch Oil and Victory Energy LLC., operates more than 75 convenience stores on behalf of three oil companies in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana under the trade name Sprint Mart.
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