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![]() On the Run store in Santiago, Chile, 2008 | |
Type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Convenience store |
Founded | 1984 |
Founder | Exxon and Mobil |
Headquarters | United States |
Number of locations | About 2000 (2021) |
Area served | Worldwide |
Owner | ExxonMobil |
Parent | Alimentation Couche-Tard (United States) Parkland Corporation (Canada) ExxonMobil (other territories) |
Website | ontherun.com |
On the Run is a flagship convenience store brand developed by ExxonMobil, used at Exxon and Mobil stations in the United States and at Esso and Mobil stations internationally. Alimentation Couche-Tard acquired the On the Run trademark and franchise network in the U.S. in 2009, and Parkland Fuel did the same in Canada in 2016; ExxonMobil retains full ownership of the brand in the rest of the world.
On the Run stores are described as larger and having more products than older-model convenience stores, featuring "fresh snacks, fill-in groceries, health & beauty supplies, plus quick meal options". [1]
The name "On the Run" is used, untranslated, around the world. Locations in the Canadian province of Quebec utilize similar branding as "Marché Express"; Imperial Oil faced criticism in 2007 when it planned to rebrand the locations as On the Run (beginning with a new location at a Mount Royal Esso station), but threats of boycotts by the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society, as well as sanctions from the Office québécois de la langue française (which enforces legal protections of the French language), caused the company to backtrack on this decision. [2]
On April 29, 2009, Canadian convenience store company Alimentation Couche-Tard, which operates stores in the United States under the Circle K name, acquired the 450-store On the Run franchise network (the stores themselves remain with local franchisees) plus 43 ExxonMobil-owned and operated stores in the Phoenix, Arizona area. [3] Many of these stores have been converted to Circle K locations, and the On the Run brand is now only primarily seen in Missouri, Louisiana, and Maine.
In August 2011, 7-Eleven announced it was acquiring 51 ExxonMobil-owned and operated On the Run locations in the Dallas/Fort Worth area; the convenience stores were re-branded as 7-Eleven, but will still sell Exxon-branded gasoline. [4] Houston-area On The Run locations (81 total) were rebranded either as a Timewise (Landmark Industries) or Star Stop (the retail division of Panjwani Energy LLC) convenience store since 7-Eleven does not operate franchises in the Houston Metro area. [5]
In 2016, Imperial Oil began to divest its retail locations in Canada; various Esso locations in Ontario and Quebec were sold to Couche-Tard (being rebranded as Circle K and Couche-Tard), [6] and 7-Eleven acquired 148 locations in Alberta and British Columbia for $2.8 billion. [7] Parkland Fuel acquired the remaining On the Run/Marché Express franchise network and associated trademarks in Canada, and has since begun to utilize the brand (including a refreshed version of the concept introduced 2018) in conjunction with its own retail brands (such as Pioneer). [8] [9]
Ireland previously had On the Run stores located in Esso stations however they were rebranded after Exxon sold their Irish petrol stations to Topaz which was later sold to Couche Tard with the forecourts rebranded to Circle K. Many of them had a food company called Nine-One-One in them, but they were ordered by the High Court to withdraw in 32 stores.[ citation needed ]
Esso's company-operated convenience stores in the UK were run through ROC UK, a subsidiary of Esso Petroleum Company Limited and ExxonMobil. Initially branded Snack & Shop, the stores were gradually converted to the On The Run format after Exxon acquired Mobil. Between 2011 and 2015 Esso/ROC sold off 359 of its company outlets in regional tranches to three large independent operators - Euro Garages, MRH (GB), and Rontec, although it continued to supply them with Esso branded fuel through an independent wholesaler, Greenergy. [10] None of the new owners continued to use On the Run. Euro Garages mainly used third party names, notably Spar and - for food offerings - Greggs, Subway, Burger King and KFC; MRH used a mix of third party names and its own Hursts C-store branding; and Rontec initially mainly used its own Shop'n Drive name, but occasionally Spar and a discount format, Family Shopper. [11] Esso retained ownership of around 200 sites that have Tesco Express stores where the site is leased to Tesco but sells Esso branded fuel.
In Egypt, On the Run convenience stores are located at Mobil stations in Cairo, Giza and Alexandria. They are open 24 hours, 7 days a week. [12]
In 2003, On the Run was named Chain of the Year by Convenience Store Decisions (CSD) magazine. In 2007, the chain was again recognized by CSD with the Best in Class Foodservice Award for its line of proprietary gourmet breakfast sandwiches under the On the Run Cafe brand name. [13]
A separate On The Run brand (now known as OTR) was started and registered as a business name by the Peregrine Corporation (Shahin family) in early 1999 for its convenience store and service stations operations in South Australia. In June the same year, Mobil applied to register trade marks for the words Mobil on the Run and On the Run, the latter of which the Shahin family opposed. [14] [15] Eventually, in 2005, it was ruled by the Federal Court of Australia that the Shahin family did not satisfy the conditions to prove that it owned the trade mark for the words On the Run by common law, even though it had registered the words as a business name. Their opposition to ExxonMobil's trade mark registration was therefore dismissed. [16] However, by 2020, the Shahin family gained the trade mark and has held it ever since. [15]
While there was no relation between OTR and Mobil's On the Run brands, OTR briefly sold Mobil fuel at 29 sites in South Australia for a few years after acquiring those Mobil-branded sites in 2010. [17]
Mobil is a petroleum brand owned and operated by American oil and gas corporation ExxonMobil. The brand was formerly owned and operated by an oil and gas corporation of the same name, which itself merged with Exxon to form ExxonMobil in 1999.
A convenience store, bodega, convenience shop, corner store or corner shop is a small retail business that stocks a range of everyday items such as coffee, groceries, snack foods, confectionery, soft drinks, ice creams, tobacco products, lottery tickets, over-the-counter drugs, toiletries, newspapers and magazines. In some jurisdictions, convenience stores are licensed to sell alcoholic drinks, although many jurisdictions limit such beverages to those with relatively low alcohol content, like beer and wine. The stores may also offer money order and wire transfer services, along with the use of a fax machine or photocopier for a small per-copy cost. Some also sell tickets or recharge smart cards, e.g. OPUS cards in Montreal or include a small deli. They differ from general stores and village shops in that they are not in a rural location and are used as a convenient supplement to larger stores.
7-Eleven, Inc., stylized as 7-ELEVEn, is a multinational chain of retail convenience stores, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The chain was founded in 1927 as an ice house storefront in Dallas. It was named Tote'm Stores between 1928 and 1946. After 70% of the company was acquired by an affiliate Ito-Yokado in 1991, it was reorganized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven & I Holdings.
Esso is a trading name for ExxonMobil. Originally, the name was primarily used by its predecessor Standard Oil of New Jersey after the breakup of the original Standard Oil company in 1911. The company adopted the name "Esso", to which the other Standard Oil companies would later object.
Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., or simply Couche-Tard, is a Canadian multinational operator of convenience stores. The company has 14,302 stores across Canada, the United States, Mexico, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Japan, China, and Indonesia. The company operates its corporate stores mainly under the Couche-Tard, Circle K, and On the Run brands but also under the affiliated brands Mac's Convenience Stores, go!(Go Store), 7-jours, Dairy Mart, Becker's and Winks.
Circle K Stores, Inc. is a chain of convenience stores that is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, and owned by Alimentation Couche-Tard, based in Laval, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1951 in El Paso, Texas, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 1990 and went through several owners, before being acquired by Alimentation Couche-Tard in 2003. As of February 2020, Circle K has 9,799 stores in North America, 2,697 stores in Europe, and an additional 2,380 stores operating under franchise agreements worldwide.
Speedway is an American convenience store and gas station chain headquartered in Enon, Ohio, with locations primarily in the Midwest and the East Coast regions of the United States wholly owned and operated by 7-Eleven. Speedway stations are located in 32 states, up significantly from its core seven-state region in the Midwest since 2012. Prior to 2021, the company was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Marathon Petroleum Corporation. It is the largest convenience store chain in central Ohio.
ampm is a convenience store chain with branches located in several U.S. states, including Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and in several countries such as Costa Rica and Brazil. The brand pulled out of the Eastern United States in 2012, but returned a decade later.
Circle K Sunkus was a chain of company-operated and franchised convenience stores in Japan. The company is a division of UNY Co., Ltd., which licensed the Circle K name from Alimentation Couche-Tard, a Canadian convenience store company that owns the Circle K brand.
APlus is an American convenience store chain owned and operated by Energy Transfer Partners, with some stores currently owned by Seven & I Holdings (7-Eleven). APlus is also the convenience store chain used by Sunoco.
Topaz was an Irish petroleum retail chain owned by the Canadian multinational, Couche-Tard, which had a presence across the island of Ireland. The legal entity was formed in 2005 and previously traded under the Statoil and Shell brands, until 2008 when the Topaz brand replaced both in Ireland. In June 2018, The Topaz brand was replaced by Circle K.
Becker's is a Canadian chain of independent convenience stores selling products of Alimentation Couche-Tard company. The original Becker Milk Company was founded in 1957 in Toronto, Ontario. The chain grew from 5 to 500 stores and was sold in 2006 to Alimentation Couche-Tard. The company converted the company-owned stores to Mac's Milk and later to Circle K, leaving a remnant of affiliate Becker's stores. Starting in 2013, Alimentation Couche-Tard began expanding the affiliate program. There are now over 40 stores in Ontario.
Holiday Stationstores is a chain of gasoline and convenience stores in the United States. It is part of the second largest convenience store chain in the world, with over 500 locations in 10 states. Stationstores are located in Alaska, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. It is based in Bloomington, Minnesota. Holiday ranked 133rd on Forbes' list of America's largest private companies before its 2017 acquisition. In July 2017, Holiday was acquired by Canadian-based convenience store operator Alimentation Couche-Tard.
CST Brands, Inc. was an American publicly traded fuel and convenience retailer. It was the second-largest of its kind in North America, with 1,900 outlets in the U.S. and Canada. CST Brands had 2013 revenues of about $12.8 billion and made approximately $360 million in EBITDA. Stores were concentrated in the central and southwestern U.S. states and in eastern Canada. Corner Store was the firm's primary retail brand in the US and in Canada's English speaking provinces. In Canada's French speaking provinces, Dépanneur du Coin was the company's retail brand. In addition to convenience store retail sales, CST Brands also sold fuel under a number of licensed energy brands such as Valero, Exxon, Shell, and Phillips 66.
The Peregrine Corporation is an Australian privately owned company which operates the On The Run brand of service stations and convenience stores in South Australia, as well as the Smokemart & GiftBox tobacconists vape & variety retail stores nationwide.
EG Group is a British retailer headquartered in Blackburn, United Kingdom, which operates filling stations, convenience stores and fast-food restaurants in Europe, the United States and Australia. The group was created through the combination of Euro Garages and EFR Group in November 2016. It remains one of the largest privately owned businesses in the United Kingdom.
Parkland Corporation is a Calgary, Alberta-based energy and retail company. Parkland operates gas stations under the Pioneer, Columbia Fuels, Ultramar, Chevron, and Fas Gas Plus brands, as well as franchised Esso locations. The company holds the rights to the convenience store brand On the Run in Canada and most of the United States, and franchises White Spot's fast food restaurant chain Triple O's in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario. Parkland also operates commercial oil and gas businesses under the Bluewave Energy, Sparlings, and Ultramar brands.
OTR, formerly On the Run, is an Australian chain of petrol stations and convenience stores based in South Australia. It is unrelated to Mobil's On the Run store branding.