Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Retail (convenience stores) |
Founded | 1934 |
Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
Number of locations | 667 |
Key people | Carl Bolch Natalie Bolch Morhous Max McBrayer |
Number of employees | 10,082 |
Website | www |
RaceTrac Inc. is an American corporation that operates a chain of gasoline service stations across the Southern United States. In 2023, Forbes ranked RaceTrac Inc. as the 18th largest private company in the United States and ranked 22 with an annual revenue of $19.72 billion. [1]
Carl Bolch Sr. founded the company in 1934 in St. Louis, Missouri, with his first stores operating under the name Carl Bolch Trackside Stations. In 1959, Bolch relocated and acquired the Oil Well Company of Opp, Alabama, which consisted of numerous independent outlets across rural Alabama.
His son, Carl Bolch Jr., who succeeded his father as chief executive, joined the company in Montgomery, Alabama in 1967. After pioneering the concept of self-service gasoline in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, [2] the company relocated its headquarters to Atlanta, Georgia in 1976. In 1979, all company-operated stores adopted the "RaceTrac" brand, and all contractor-operated stores took on the "RaceWay" brand.
In the 1990s, RaceTrac operated as a cash-only business, and it now accepts credit cards, debit cards and fleet cards.
In 1996, RaceTrac founded Metroplex Energy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of RaceTrac, Inc. and a wholesale fuel supplying company that secures bulk fuel to supply RaceTrac and RaceWay stores and other third-party companies.
On December 31, 2012, Carl Bolch Jr. transitioned the CEO title to his daughter, Allison Bolch Moran. During that time, Bolch Jr. maintained his executive chairman position. [3] In February 2019, Max McBrayer became CEO of RaceTrac and Natalie Bolch Morhous became President of RaceTrac. On January 2, 2024, Natalie Morhous became CEO of RaceTrac, replacing Max McBrayer. Carl Bolch Jr. remains executive chairman of the RaceTrac board.
On April 5, 2021, employee tax and financial records, [4] and email addresses and first names of some of the RaceTrac Rewards Loyalty users were illegally accessed and posted to the victim shaming site for the Clop ransomware gang. [5]
On July 5, 2023, RaceTrac announced that its subsidiary, Metroplex Energy, agreed to acquire Gulf Oil LP for an undisclosed amount. On December 14, 2023, the acquisition was completed. The acquisition marks the largest in the company's history, expanding its scale and operating network. As part of the transaction, RaceTrac acquired Gulf's iconic brand in the United States and Puerto Rico, all Gulf-branded distributor and license agreements comprising approximately 1,100 branded sites, as well as exclusive rights to market fuel at eleven Massachusetts Turnpike service plaza locations. [6]
RaceTrac, Inc. operates more than 580 retail gasoline convenience stores and travel centers in 13 states under the RaceTrac (company-operated) and RaceWay (contract operator-operated) names. Most RaceTrac locations feature 20 to 24 fueling positions and a 5000+ square foot convenience store offering more than 4,000 items. In January 2012, RaceTrac introduced its new 6,000 square foot store design, which features Swirl World frozen yogurt, free Wi-Fi internet and indoor and outdoor seating. [7]
RaceTrac locations operate in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. There are more than 200 RaceWay-branded locations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. [8]
In 2023, RaceTrac announced plans for an expansion into Ohio, marking the chain's first move into the Midwestern United States. The first location is expected to open sometime in 2024 in the Columbus suburb of Delaware. RaceTrac's expansion into Ohio follows Wawa's planned expansion into the state, as well as Buc-ee's planned location in the Dayton, Ohio area, Sheetz's expansion into Columbus & Dayton, Casey's expansion into the western part of the state, and 7-Eleven's purchase of Ohio-based Speedway. [9]
The company has been ranked on Forbes magazine's list of largest private companies every year since 1998. [10]
In October 2009, Convenience Store News named Carl Bolch Jr., then executive chairman and CEO, the 2009 Retailer of the Year for "pioneering forecourt retailing in the Southeast and making an indelible mark on the convenience industry overall". [11]
In 2017, Convenience Store News named RaceTrac as the Cold & Frozen Beverages Innovator of the Year. [12]
In 2023, USA Today 10Best Awards: Convenience Stores - awarded RaceTrac with 3rd Best Gas Station Brand in the U.S. [13]
In 2023, RaceTrac was listed in the In Good Company Report – a list of companies that demonstrate a commitment to business generosity. [14]
In 2023, CSP named Natalie Morhous, President of RaceTrac, Inc. as Retail Leader of the Year. . [15]
This section contains content that is written like an advertisement .(March 2023) |
RaceTrac has been actively involved with The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) and hosted several fundraising events since 2011 that has helped to collectively raise over $6 million to cure Parkinson's disease.
Sunoco LP is an American master limited partnership organized under Delaware state laws and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Dating back to 1886, the company has transitioned from a vertically integrated energy company to a distributor of fuels. It was previously engaged in oil, natural gas exploration and production, refining, chemical manufacturing, and retail fuel sales, but divested these businesses. Sunoco is the largest independent distributor of fuels in the United States.
Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., or simply Couche-Tard, is a Canadian multinational operator of convenience stores. The company has approximately 16,700 stores across Canada, the United States, Mexico, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, 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!, 7-jours, Dairy/Daisy Mart, Becker's and Winks. Operations in Russia were suspended in 2022.
Circle K Stores, Inc. is an American chain of convenience stores headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, and owned by Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc., 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.
Hy-Vee, Inc. is an employee-owned chain of supermarkets in the Midwestern and Southern United States, with more than 280 locations in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, with stores planned in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama. Hy-Vee was founded in 1930 by Charles Hyde and David Vredenburg in Beaconsfield, Iowa, in a small brick building known as the Beaconsfield Supply Store, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Wawa, Inc. is an American chain of convenience stores and gas stations originating in the Philadelphia metropolitan area and located along the East Coast of the United States, operating in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Florida, Alabama, and North Carolina. Wawa is based in, primarily associated with, and mainly concentrated in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, though in recent years it has gradually expanded its store locations beyond the Philadelphia area. The company's corporate headquarters is located in the Wawa area of Chester Heights, Pennsylvania in Greater Philadelphia.
Speedway is an American convenience store and fuel 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 36 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.
Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an American petroleum refining, marketing, and transportation company headquartered in Findlay, Ohio. The company was a wholly owned subsidiary of Marathon Oil until a corporate spin-off in 2011.
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.
Sheetz, Inc. is an American chain of convenience stores. Its stores, which are open 24/7 year-round, offer made-to-order fast food, and most include a gas station, while a few locations are full-scale truck stops, offering showers and a laundromat. The family-owned company has over 21,000 employees, and operates more than 750 company-owned stores located in Central and Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, Virginia, North Carolina, and Michigan.
Casey's General Stores, Inc. is a chain of convenience stores in the Midwestern and Southern United States. The company is headquartered in Ankeny, Iowa, a suburb of Des Moines. As of October 1, 2023, Casey's had 2,500 stores in 16 states. Following 7-Eleven's purchase of Speedway, Casey's is the 3rd largest convenience store chain in the United States and the largest that is wholly American-owned. It is one of two Iowa-based Fortune 500 companies. Casey's is famous for their pizza including a breakfast pizza and a taco pizza resulting in Casey's being the fifth largest pizza chain in the U.S.
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.
Kum & Go is a convenience store chain primarily located in the Midwestern United States. Started by William A. Krause and Tony S. Gentle, the company is headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa and operates 400 stores in 13 states—primarily in its home state of Iowa.
The Pantry, Inc. was a publicly traded convenience store chain based in Cary, North Carolina that operated Kangaroo Express stores. The Pantry was founded in 1967 by Sam Wornom and Truby Proctor, Jr. in Sanford, North Carolina The company has been publicly traded since June 1999 and owned by investors since 1987, when then investor Montrose Capital purchased controlling shares from Wornom and Proctor. Recent CEOs have included the former chairman of the board and interim CEO Edwin J. Holman, who took over after Terrance M. Marks, the former president and CEO, resigned in December 2011. Dennis Hatchell was the CEO of the company as of 2012.
Kwik Trip is a chain of convenience stores founded in 1965 with locations throughout Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan under the name Kwik Trip, and in Illinois, Iowa, and South Dakota under the name Kwik Star, although the Dixon, IL location operates as Kwik Trip. The company also operates stores under the name Tobacco Outlet Plus, Tobacco Outlet Plus Grocery, Hearty Platter, Kwik Spirits, and Stop-N-Go. Kwik Trip, Inc. is a privately held company headquartered in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
GoMart, Inc. is a convenience store chain based in Gassaway, West Virginia. The company currently operates over 100 stores in most of the state of West Virginia, and border areas of Virginia and Ohio. Most Go-Mart stations are unbranded. Go-Mart is the 53rd-largest convenience store chain in the United States.
VPS Convenience Store Group was an American convenience store chain headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina that could trace its roots to the founding of the first Village Pantry convenience store in 1966. VPS was sold in two parts in 2013 and 2015 to GPM Investments.
TravelCenters of America LLC is the largest publicly traded full-service truck stop and travel center company in the United States. The company operates full service centers, convenience stores, and restaurants under the TravelCenters of America, TA, Petro Stopping Centers, TA Express, GOASIS brands ' TravelCenters of America is headquartered in Westlake, Ohio, operates in 44 U.S. states, and employs nearly 20,000 people, as of 2021.
The QuikTrip Corporation, more commonly known as QuikTrip (QT), is an American chain of convenience stores based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that operates in the Midwestern, Southern, and Western United States.
Family Express is a privately-held United States convenience store chain headquartered in Valparaiso, Indiana, with more than 80 locations across northern and central Indiana.