Rich Mione, the man who started as a stock clerk in Michigan and ended his career as Senior Director of Marketing at GPM, has passed away.

Mione was a c-store veteran who spent 46 years in the industry before retiring at the end of 2019. Through the years, he climbed the ropes at many different c-store chains including Open Pantry Food Marts, Crown Petroleum, VPS Convenience Group and finally, GPM Investments LLC.

Mione provided extensive expertise with his passion for marketing in his six-year stint at GPM as he watched the company grow from 300 stores to approximately 1,400.

“We are deeply saddened to hear of the loss of Rich Mione,” said Arie Kotler, CEO. “He was an invaluable asset to our company and he will not be forgotten. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family during this difficult time.”

Rich Mione was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the South Carolina Association of Convenience Stores in July 2019. He was on their board for over 29 years and served as Association President three times. He spent his time after retirement with his wife Kathy and grandchildren.

Based in Richmond, Va., GPM operates or supplies fuel to approximately 1,400 stores in Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia and Wisconsin.

Brands include: 1-Stop, Admiral, Apple Market, Bread & Butter Shop, BreadBox, Cash’s, Crenco, E-Z Mart, fas mart, Jetz, Jiffi Stop, Jiffy Stop, Li’l Cricket, Next Door Store, Roadrunner Markets, RStore, Scotchman, shore stop, Town Star, Village Pantry and Young’s.