Dive Brief:

• GPM Investments, the c-store arm of Arko Corporation, opened its first Fas Mart Express unmanned store concept two weeks ago, CEO, president and chairman Arie Kotler said during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call. 
• The first Express location appears alongside one of the company’s Quarles cardlock locations in the Richmond, Virginia, area. 
• While Arko has done most of its growth through M&A, closing five acquisitions in the last 18 months alone, the Fas Mart Express opening shows it’s looking at different avenues for growth as well.

Dive Insight:

Arko’s new unmanned store format represents an easy way to extend its retail reach with a smaller financial outlay than a traditional store. While the company could not be reached for more details by press time, it appears its plans are to continue using this format at its cardlock sites. 

“We just opened an express unmanned location on one of the Quarles stores in Richmond, Virginia, and the idea is to continue to expand those opportunities,” said Kotler. 

Quarles was acquired by Arko in June 2022. The deal added 121 proprietary cardlock sites to Arko’s portfolio, meaning there are plenty of opportunities to grow the Express format in this way if the company chooses. 

“Our goal at the end of the day is to figure out the way out to tap into those unmanned locations,” Kotler said. The strategy caters to the packaged products that make up Arko’s destination categories, including candy, sweets, salty and alternative snacks.

While Arko did not supply more details by press time, a Flickr user shared pictures of the new store and described the interior as containing a collection of vending machines. 

Retailers like Arko are assessing whether unmanned stores will give them a meaningful presence in places where traditional stores might not fit. Technology firm Juxta recently rolled out the first of its Nomad stores, with Golden Pantry, Choice Market and Yesway among the first to adopt this solution. 

Choice Market later announced it would also be partnering with AWM to scale unmanned mini-markets at nontraditional locations like hospitals and universities.

Kotler also noted in the call that GPM plans three new-to-industry traditional stores in 2024, with the first breaking ground shortly. 

Richmond, Virginia-based Arko has more than 1,500 c-stores in 33 states under a variety of brands in its GPM Investments arm, including E-Z Mart, Breadbox, ExpressShop and Pride.