Fikes Wholesale Inc. (CEFCO)

After a few years of expanding, CEFCO has been selling stores that it says no longer fit the chain’s operating model. As of early January, nearly a dozen sites were under contract.

CEFCO is focusing on newer and larger stores, especially for expanded foodservice offerings. Most stores are in Texas, but CEFCO has expanded with ground-up stores in additional states. The chain operates in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas.

Over the years, the chain’s growth has been through acquisition, as well as new builds into new markets. The chain emphasizes it has brightly lit stores with clean restrooms and a wide variety of products. Weekly deals and coupons are offered to CEF Club members. CEFCO also operates some branded quick-service restaurants.

Source: Convenience Digital Resource Library, Technomic. For benchmarking purposes, store counts are year-end 2018.