CrossAmerica, alongside its subsidiary Lehigh Gas Wholesale Services Inc., has agreed to acquire 59 c-stores from Dublin-based Applegreen for a total of $16.9 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The acquisition includes the sites — located in Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Florida — in addition to the inventory at all locations.
The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2024 and is still subject to customary closing conditions.
From Ireland to the U.S.
Applegreen first entered the U.S. market in 2014, and then in 2017 acquired Bob Brandi Stations in South Carolina for $5.4 million.
For the acquisition, Applegreen partnered with an institutional real-estate investor which acquired property assets of the business for $70.1 million. Applegreen funded $5.4 million from existing resources and entered into a long-term 15-year agreement with the investor to lease the properties.
Later in 2017, Getty Realty Corp. acquired 33 Applegreen c-stores and five stand-alone Burger Kings — all of which were located in South Carolina — for $68 million.
In 2019, Applegreen made a huge move in the Midwest, acquiring 46 c-stores in the St. Paul and Minneapolis metropolitan areas through a 10-year lease agreement with Lehigh Gas Wholesale — a relationship that proved to be pivotal for the chain’s U.S. operations.
Founded in 1992, Applegreen opened its first site in Ballyfermot, West Dublin. Now, the company has expanded to operate more than 600 locations in Ireland, the U.K. and the U.S.
CrossAmerica’s Busy Decade
CrossAmerica has been very active in the mergers and acquisitions space in recent years. Since 2016, the company has made a variety of acquisitions and strategic sales.
Some include:
- 31-store acquisition from Holiday Station, 2016
- Acquisition of State Oil Co., 2016
- Acquisition of Jet Pep, 2017
- Asset Exchange agreement with Couche-Tard
- 106-store acquisition from 7-Eleven, 2021
CrossAmerica is a wholesale distributor of motor fuels, an operator of convenience stores and an owner and lessee of real estate used in the retail distribution of motor fuels.
With a geographic footprint of 34 states, CrossAmerica Partners distributes branded and unbranded petroleum for motor vehicles to approximately 1,800 locations and owns or leases approximately 1,100 sites. Its seven convenience store brands offer food, essentials and car washes at more than 250 locations across 10 states.