Beaver-themed gas station chain Buc-ee’s is set to open in six new states as part of a national expansion that began in 2019.
The Texas-based chain, known for its supersized convenience stores, clean restrooms and merchandise branded with its beaver head logo, will open in at least six new states by the end of next year, Fox Business reported.
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Arizona and Arkansas expect to see their first Buc-ee’s locations open by the end of this year. Buc-ee's plans to open in Wisconsin, Louisiana, Kansas and North Carolina by the end of 2027.
The chain, which has gained cult status in its home state and beyond, now has 55 locations in 12 states, according to its website. It first expanded outside of Texas in 2019, starting in Alabama and spreading to Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Buc-ee’s first opened a small-format store in Lake Jackson, Texas, in 1982. In recent years, it has begun shuttering its older, smaller stores and focusing on opening more giant travel plazas. The chain revealed plans in 2022 to open a 75K SF location, its largest at the time, in Luling, Texas.
Now that size is seemingly standard. Buc-ee’s plans to open a 74K SF store in June with 120 fuel pumps in Goodyear, Arizona, Fox reported. A similar setup is slated to open in August in Benton, Arkansas.
Travel centers of at least 70K SF are also slated to open in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, Ruston, Louisiana, and Kansas City, Kansas, in 2027.
In a further push east, Buc-ee’s plans to open its first North Carolina location in Mebane in the fourth quarter of 2027, and it may not be the last.
“North Carolina is a great place to do business, and Buc-ee’s intends to build additional stores in the state; specific locations have yet to be determined,” Buc-ee’s Director of Real Estate and Development Stan Beard told local outlet WXII.
More locations are planned for San Marcos, Texas; Monroe County, Georgia; Lafayette, Louisiana; St. Lucie and Tallahassee, Florida; Gallaway, Tennessee; and Fayette County, Arkansas, between this year and next.
Buc-ee’s expansion mirrors convenience store brand Wawa, which planned an expansion into six new states in 2024. But it contrasts with 7-Eleven, which plans to close more than 600 stores this year as inflation pressures U.S. consumers.
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