LOCK HAVEN, Pa. -- Several Uni-Mart convenience stores and an associated Choice Cigarette Discount Outlet store in the Lock Haven, Pa., area were unexpectedly closed at the end of business Saturday after ridding their shelves of most items and running their gasoline tanks dry, said The Express.
Uni-Mart stores in Lock Haven, Avis and Beech Creek, plus the Choice store in Castanea Township, Pa., closed Saturday night, the report said. The newspaper could not confirm if any other area stores were closed, and a call to the Uni-Mart's corporate office in [image-nocss] State College, Pa., was not returned, it said. Employees declined to comment on the abrupt closings, it added.
There was no sign announcing the closing at the Lock Haven store, The Express said, and no announcement of the moves were made on the company's website.
Many residents were seen filling up their gas tanks as both local stores cut their fuel prices by as much as 25 cents a gallon, to $2.449, until the tanks at both stores ran dry.
The paper noted but could not confirm that there was speculation that the closures are related to a transfer of ownership. One store clerk, who asked not to be identified, said the Uni-Marts are expected to reopen very soon, but the Choice store may not.
Other rumors are that the move is related to a lawsuit brought by c-store owners against Uni-Marts LLC for fraud and breach of contract, claiming the company, its real estate and financial firms, misled them about operating costs and profitability.
As reported in CSP Daily News in early January, the owners filed the civil suit against Uni-Marts LLC, Chicago-based NRC Realty Advisors LLC, and Edison, N.J.-based Kuber Financial Services LLC.
The suit alleged Uni-Marts engaged in a wide range of wrongful conduct that financially hurt store owners.
Approximately 70 stores with 40 separate owners who purchased stores in Pennsylvania during 2004 and 2005 are complainants in the suit.
In 2004, the owners were solicited through booklets and seminars to buy 225 c-stores. The suit said information owners received contained serious omissions and representations. In particular, the company allegedly misled owners about critical costs to operate the stores, misstating or neglecting to mention how much payroll, maintenance, taxes and insurance would be. The company is also said to have overcharged owners for gasoline, in violation of agreements.
The defendants prohibited owners from contacting personnel at stores they were considering purchasing, the suit stated.
In a press statement responding to the suit, the company said, Uni-Marts believes that the claims alleged in the complaint are without merit and will defend itself vigorously. John F. Stoviak of the Philadelphia law firm of Saul Ewing LLP will serve as Uni-Marts' lead trial counsel. In the meantime, Uni-Marts plans to continue to work with its dealers in a constructive and mutually beneficial manner.
A private company, Uni-Marts was founded in 1972 and operates 288 c-stores and Choice Cigarette Discount Outlets in Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio.
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