Lewis & Raulerson Inc.

At the beginning of the year, Lewis & Raulerson operated 37 convenience stores in southern Georgia under the Friendly Express brand and sold Shell-branded fuel at all or most units. A raze-and-rebuild location will become operational by mid-year, which will bring the store count to 38, officials said.

With a retail motto of "Retailing ... The Friendly Way," Friendly Express Inc.'s success has been built on the quality of people in the store and the atmosphere it has worked to convey to the customer, the company said.

For benchmarking purposes, store counts are as of Jan. 1, 2026.