Dive Brief:
- Maverik will reduce its corporate staff in Des Moines, Iowa, as the convenience retailer looks to consolidate its headquarters to its home base of Salt Lake City, according to a Wednesday report from We Are Iowa.
- In a statement to the publication, Maverik said it aims to “improve efficiency and better serve our growing customer base” and that “a limited presence will remain in Des Moines to support geographically based business needs.”
- Maverik will lay off 100 team members, effective Oct. 6, according to a notice filed with the Iowa Workforce Development. Maverik’s regional headquarters in Des Moines — established in late 2023 shortly after it acquired Kum & Go — housed about 250 employees, according to city documents.
Dive Insight:
The reported staff reduction comes less than a month after Maverik began rebranding Kum & Go’s convenience stores in Iowa, Kum & Go’s home base and largest market since the company was founded in 1959.
Maverik’s acquisition of Kum & Go’s roughly 400 convenience stores closed in August 2023. A month later, the Utah-based company planted its flag in Des Moines with a 10-year lease for a 40,000 square-foot office space in the city’s downtown area. At the time, the agreement stated that Maverik would retain 250 jobs with an average salary of $98,000 in Des Moines. Maverik also pledged at the time to invest $1 million into renovating the space.
About two years later, Maverik appears to have backtracked on its plans to establish roots in Des Moines as the retailer continues to dissolve Kum & Go’s presence in Iowa and across the Midwest. 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.
Representatives from Maverik did not respond by press time when asked to elaborate on why it decided to consolidate its headquarters and reduce its staff in Des Moines.
“We are currently working closely with impacted Team Members to develop individual plans, including relocation opportunities, and are committed to supporting them with transparency and care throughout this transition,” Maverik said in a statement to We Are Iowa.
Maverik began rebranding Kum & Go’s convenience stores in Iowa in mid-July and is expected to have around 60 locations changed to its own banner by early November, according to Maverik’s remodeling scheduling on its website. As of July, Kum & Go had about 96 convenience stores left in Iowa.
Maverik only has three states in which it hasn’t started rebrands — Minnesota and the Dakotas — as the company progresses towards what appears to be a retirement of the Kum & Go banner.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the number of corporate employees Maverik plans to lay off in Des Moines.
