Dive Brief:
- Maverik has begun rebranding Kum & Go convenience stores in Nebraska and will start doing the same in Iowa next week, according to the convenience retailer’s remodeling schedule on its website.
- The first four Kum & Go rebrands in Nebraska began in mid-June and those locations reopened under the Maveriks brand later in the month. Four more Nebraska locations are expected to reopen under the Maverik name in the coming days. Meanwhile, Maverik is set to complete its first 34 rebrands in Kum & Go’s home state of Iowa between next week and mid-October.
- Maverik now only has three states in which it hasn’t started rebrands — Minnesota and the Dakotas — as the Utah-based company progresses towards what appears to be a retirement of the Kum & Go banner.
Dive Insight:
Maverik’s rebranding update in Iowa is arguably its most significant to date, since the Hawkeye State has been Kum & Go’s headquarters and largest market since the company was founded in 1959. Even as Maverik has taken over the retailer’s banner in several states over the past year, Iowa is still home to 96 Kum & Go stores, according to the latter’s website.
The first rebrand in Iowa will begin in Neola, a small town located near Omaha, Nebraska, on July 18, with an expected reopening on July 22, according to Maverik’s remodel schedule. Seven others in Iowa are expected to be completed by the end of July, with a further nine in August, two in September and 16 in October. Maverik did not offer a timeline for the other 62 stores in the state.
In Nebraska, where Kum & Go still has 17 stores, the first four rebrands took place between June 17 and June 20, according to its remodeling schedule. Maverik expects to finish the next four by July 18. Like in Iowa, Maverik did not offer an update on when it expects to complete every rebrand in Nebraska.
A spokesperson from Maverik did not respond by press time when asked to comment on the company’s Kum & Go rebranding efforts in Iowa and Nebraska.
Maverik acquired Kum & Go in late 2023, and the first round of rebrands began early in 2024 in Utah and Colorado. In October, Maverik revealed plans to rebrand Kum & Go’s stores in Oklahoma, and a month later confirmed intentions to rebrand all Kum & Go locations, although a company spokesperson emphasized at the time that Maverik would take a “thoughtful, market-by-market approach” before confirming each state. Rebrands in Arkansas commenced this past January, while those in Missouri and Michigan kicked off in the spring.
Several former corporate Kum & Go staffers told C-Store Dive earlier this year that despite Maverik initially saying it would maintain Kum & Go’s branding and programs, the Utah-based company never considered doing so, leading to internal conflict.
