Dive Brief:
- Royal Farms is expanding to North Carolina in early 2023, with plans underway to open stores in six regions throughout the state, according to a Monday announcement.
- The news comes about two months after Royal Farms revealed it’s also expanding to Michigan — its first location outside the East Coast — next year. These two expansions will bring the retailer’s footprint to eight states of operation.
- In moving to North Carolina, Royal Farms will directly compete with Circle K, 7-Eleven, Sheetz and QuikTrip, all of which have a sizable footprint in the Tar Heel State.
Dive Insight:
Royal Farms’ first North Carolina location will open in Grandy, a community on the far eastern side of the state, according to the announcement. Other stores will open in New Bern; Greenville; Lumberton; Kinston; and Jacksonville, North Carolina. Royal Farms has further plans to open more locations in other areas of the state as well, according to the announcement.
Each store will feature the Royal Farms Kitchen program, which features made-to-order bone-in fried chicken, chicken tenders, chicken sliders, salads, breakfast sandwiches and more. The menu also includes a variety of side dishes such as mac and cheese and mashed potatoes, as well as homemade milkshakes.
Every location will also feature no-fee ATMs and air pump stations, as well as lottery tickets and fuel. Car washes will be available at some locations.
Founded in 1959, Baltimore-based Royal Farms currently operates about 250 stores in Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Royal Farms is one of many c-store chains focusing on new market expansion this year. Others include Kwik Trip, which also moved into Michigan; Wawa, which began construction on its first store in Alabama; and Buc-ee’s, which expanded to Missouri. EG America also debuted its first Cumberland Farms stores in the Gulf Coast of Florida and Alabama this year, while QuikTrip opened its first c-store in Colorado.
