Par Mar Oil Co.

Par Mar Oil Co. added 34 stores in 2022, pushing it into the Top 40 of CSP's list for the first time.

Joseph Grow of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and James L. Hollister of Marietta, Ohio, founded Par Mar Oil Co. in 1967, with "Par" standing for Parkersburg and "Mar" for Marietta. The company opened its first convenience store in 1979. It operates Par Mar Stores in West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Maryland.

The chain operates car washes and quick-service restaurants, including QSRs under the A&W, Fazoli's, Quiznos and Subway brands, as well as Par Mar's proprietary foodservice. Fuel brands include BP, Exxon, Marathon and Shell.

Croton Holding Co., Pittsburgh, purchased Par Mar Oil in 2016. Croton Holding's largest asset is Superior Petroleum Co.

In 2022, Par Mar purchased its first four stores in Maryland.

For benchmarking purposes, store counts are as of Jan. 1, 2023.