FRONT END Leadership Spotlight
Providing Leadership in Challenging Times Derek Gaskins, chief marketing officer for CStore Decisions’ 2021 Convenience Store Chain of the Year, Yesway, discusses the value of team members and connecting with consumers in the post-pandemic market.
Derek Gaskins, chief marketing officer, Yesway
John Lofstock • Editor-in-Chief
Yesway burst onto the convenience store scene in 2015, capitalizing on the real estate expertise of its founding firm Brookwood Financial Partners. The private equity investment firm launched the company with the acquisition of Country Stores, a 10-store portfolio in western Iowa, in December 2015. From there, it never looked back. In 2016, Yesway established its regional headquarters in western Des Moines, Iowa, and immediately acquired 21 stores from Kum & Go. In the months that followed, Yesway expanded its store count to 38 locations in Iowa and Kansas with the acquisitions of the Wes-T-Go and Chillerz chains in Texas and Oklahoma, bringing its store total to 73. In 2019, the chain bolstered its portfolio with the acquisition of 304 stores from New Mexicobased Allsup’s. Today, the chain is up to 402 stores and continues to drive innovation through its loyalty program, proprietary foodservice, private-label snacks and beverages, and rollout of the Allsup’s Market concept store. Over the next 18 months, Yesway plans to raze and rebuild 14
CSTORE DECISIONS •
July 2021
27 locations, resulting in 5,500-square-foot prototype stores in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma, all of which will have expanded fuel and diesel platforms. In addition to the raze-and-rebuild program, Yesway has commenced the remodeling of approximately 100 additional stores in Texas and New Mexico. The extensive improvements include exterior upgrades to storefronts, parking lots and signage, the addition of LED lighting under the canopy and inside the stores, and upgrades to store interiors, fountain and beverage areas, and bathrooms. These improvements are being made to better serve its customers by providing
cstoredecisions.com
