Dive Brief:
- Global Partners LP is rebranding all 64 Timewise convenience stores it acquired last year to its Honey Farms banner, President and CEO Eric Slifka said in an interview on Friday.
- The Timewise stores, which Global Partners acquired from Landmark Industries through a joint venture with ExxonMobil, are all based in the Houston area. Slifka noted that Global Partners is also “resetting the stores and putting a little capital into them.”
- About 40 to 50 of the rebrands are already complete, and Slifka said he expects the rest to be done in the coming months.
Dive Insight:
Until recently, Global Partners’ Honey Farms banner included 11 company-operated convenience stores in the greater Worcester, Massachusetts, area, in addition to 22 standalone locations. Global Partners acquired the Honey Farms chain for $36 million back in 2017.
Not only will Houston be introduced to a new c-store chain, but the rebrand will nearly septuple Global Partners’ company-operated Honey Farms network, growing it from 11 to 75 locations across two U.S. states.
Regarding the money Global Partners is investing into these locations, Slifka said no remodels or major changes beyond the store rebrands have been solidified yet, since the company wants to first get a better idea of how to present these stores to the community.
“The market is a little different in Texas, so we're trying to make sure that our offering is tailored towards what our guests want,” Slifka said.
This strategy is in line with how Global Partners usually handles store integrations, especially in new markets, he noted.
“We apply what we know, but we also go a little slow to make sure that we understand our guests and what the market wants,” he said. “So before we go in and start making big changes, we'll make sure we understand our consumer.”
Slifka noted that permitting issues are the only thing that might slow down these rebrands, although he’s not concerned about those. Instead, he’s more excited about the company’s c-store arrival in Texas, where it already operates five terminals that will help supply its new retail sites.
“Between the retail and ... our large wholesale business that we have there too, I think we’re going to make real inroads in the state,” Slifka said.
Waltham, Massachusetts-based Global Partners operates more than 350 convenience stores mainly on the East Coast. Besides Honey Farms, its brands include Alltown Fresh, XtraMart, and Jiffy Mart. The retailer also supplies fuel to about 1,700 locations in 12 states.
