Casey’s agrees to acquire 63 convenience stores from EG America

Casey’s General Stores Inc. has agreed to acquire 63 convenience stores from EG America LLC, a subsidiary of EG Group Ltd., according to an announcement Tuesday. The stores are located in Kentucky and Tennessee, and currently operate under the Minit Mart and Certified Oil banners.

Casey’s and EG America, two of the leading convenience store chains in the United States, anticipate the deal will close later this year, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Ankeny, Iowa-based Casey’s said it expects to retain the affected employees at each store, and EG America is cooperating to make their transition as seamless as possible, the Westborough, Massachusetts-based company said.

“One of the key pillars in our strategic plan is to accelerate our store growth over the next three years and bring Casey’s to more communities,” Darren Rebelez, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Casey’s, said. “This opportunity is an excellent strategic fit as we look to add locations in Kentucky and Tennessee, which are both within our existing distribution footprint. We look forward to serving more guests in these markets and welcoming the team members from this transaction into the Casey’s family.”

Nick Unkovic, president of EG America, said, “We have built a strong and successful business over the years in these Certified Oil and Minit Mart stores, and we are proud of the hard work and dedication shown by our team members there. Casey’s is an excellent operator, and we believe these stores and team members will continue to thrive under their ownership.”

Zuber Issa, co-Founder and co-CEO of EG Group, said, “EG Group is pleased to have found a new home for some of our Certified Oil and Minit Mart portfolio. This divestment will enable both parties to execute their strategic plans, respectively. For EG Group, this divestment also represents another important step in executing our deleveraging strategy.”

EG Group acquired the Minit Mart c-stores in Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois, Wisconsin and Ohio from TravelCenters of America LLC, Westlake, Ohio, for about $330.8 million in 2018. It acquired 69 Certified Oil convenience stores and gas stations operating in Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio in 2019.

Founded in 2001 by the Issa brothers, the Blackburn, U.K.-based EG Group is a leading independent convenience retailer, which has established partnerships with global brands, as well as a focused portfolio of proprietary brands.

EG Group currently has more than 6,600 sites across the United Kingdom and Ireland, Europe, the United States and Australia.

Casey’s has more than 2,500 convenience stores. It is the third-largest convenience store retailer and the fifth-largest pizza chain in the United States.

This story was originally published in WGB sister publication CSP Daily News.