As Englefield Inc. celebrates 65 years in business, its Duchess convenience store chain, now guided by the third generation of family leadership, is entering a new chapter.
Founded more than five decades ago, Duchess has grown its footprint to 115 locations, including 114 stores across Ohio and one in West Virginia.
Ashley Englefield DeWitt, president of Englefield Retail, and a third-generation member of the family business, always knew she wanted to join the family business, but it took time to determine where her skills were best suited.
“When I joined the company, I worked throughout the office and trained with people across different divisions so I could learn every part of the business,” she said. She found herself most drawn to the retail side of the business. The fast-paced environment and employee and customer interaction appealed to her immediately.
One of DeWitt’s big focuses has been upgrading legacy locations. Over the last two years the chain has remodeled about 25 stores, with plans for another 12 over the next year. The remodels range from raise and rebuilds to smaller facelifts where elements from Duchess’ prototype design are added to older stores. Changes include refacing the front exterior with new bricks and awnings; as replacing internal elements such as cabinets and countertops; and adding new food and beverage equipment and merchandising displays. “So really modernizing the store with a retrofit of our (latest) design,” DeWitt explained.
“Real estate is another big area I focus on,” DeWitt said. “We’re actively looking for new sites and new construction opportunities, and we’re about to bring on two new-to-industry (NTI) sites this calendar year.” One is located in St. Marys, Ohio, and the other is in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, where the company already operates one site.
Duchess’ largest stores measure 5,500 square feet, and it has a second design to accommodate its 4,500 square-foot sites. “Those are the two store sizes we would typically choose from for an NTI site,” DeWitt said.
The latest interior design puts a special emphasis on Duchess’ food and beverage offerings within the store. The company worked with a designer that helped create different destinations within the store from the food and beverage area to the center store section and then the checkout where team members welcome every customer who enters the store. The stores feature a red and yellow color scheme and a lot of natural light, wood accents and an open ceiling. Each store includes a wall that welcomes guests, includes local tie-ins and says, “Our Family Fresh Tradition since 1961.”
In the forecourt, 90% of the stores fly the BP flag, while a handful have Duchess-branded gas.
Going forward, DeWitt is focused on growing Duchess’ footprint strategically in a “smart and steady” fashion in areas that make sense for the chain, rather than “growth for the sake of growth.”
“We do really well in rural communities where we have strong local ties, so we’re continuing to look for areas like that. We’re not just looking for land anywhere; we’re focused on communities where we believe Duchess would be a good fit.”
Looking ahead, the regional powerhouse is doubling down on strategic growth, operational excellence and maintaining the community connections that have fueled its success from the beginning.
