Kum & Go will open an its first urban convenience store, located in downtown Des Moines, Iowa.
According to the Des Moines Register, the 3,000-square-foot store will be located in a renovated, historic building, and is expected to open in spring 2020.
The store will focus on “healthy and better-for-you products,” as well as traditional convenience items, Tanner Krause, president of Kum & Go, told the Des Moines Register.
Krause said it will also serve as a test store for the chain’s new items and a potential prototype for additional stores in the 11 states in which the chain operates.
“Kum & Go is trying to take a lead on healthy items in a convenience setting, and we think this concept and this audience will be a great testing ground for that change,” he said.
The company has had stores without gas pumps, but the downtown store will be the first in an urban setting without a dedicated parking lot. It will also be the first not built on the company’s standard lot, which averages 1.5 acres.
“There are great fans of Kum & Go that are unable to have their needs met during the majority of their workday due to our locations,” Krause said. ” … We think this is a great opportunity to offer them a nice, safe, elevated retail experience.”
The store will offer foodservice and grab-and-go items including pizza, sandwiches and salads, as well as select wine and liquor. It will also offer packaged snacks and household items like medicine and toiletries. It will not feature roller grill, the nacho cheese bar or craft beer growlers offered in Kum & Go’s newer Marketplace concept.
The store will focus on sustainability, including the use of reusable bags rather than plastic. Kim & Go will also utilize compostable silverware and straws, recyclable cups and lids and post-consumer recycled food packaging in this store and all its stores nationwide.
Krause said these changes will reduce the amount of flood plastic used in the company’s food operations by more than 90%.