Edwin P. Kuhn, who served as president and CEO of TravelCenters of America from 1992 to 2005 and as chairman from 2005 to 2007, died March 19. He was 80 years old.
Kuhn stepped into the top role at TA shortly before the company — then known as Truckstops of America — was spun out of BP and sold to the Clipper Group in 1993. From there, he set to growing the company by getting the right people in the right positions and keeping them engaged.
“I made sure I surrounded myself with smart people, and we visited the sites because it was important for people to know the management team,” Kuhn previously said, according to an in memoriam announcement posted by TA. “Culture is what it is all about.”
The announcement noted that in Kuhn’s first year at the head of TA, the company’s earnings before interest, taxes, and depreciation (EBITDA) increased more than 25%, from about $20 million to $26 million.
But it wasn’t just the earnings that grew under Kuhn’s stewardship.
TA added 112 locations in 1997 with the acquisition of the National Auto/Truckstops chain, growing its footprint to 136 sites and prompting the company to change its name to TravelCenters of America to reflect a broader focus than the previous emphasis on truck drivers. It later acquired the 17-location Burns Bros Travel stops — a company TA had engaged in co-marketing programs with for years under Kuhn — as well as the Rip Griffin Truck Services chain of 11 travel centers.
Kuhn also sought to improve the customer experience at TA’s locations, both for truckers and other drivers.
“Our long-term goal was to create facilities with the wow factor that were four-wheeler friendly as well as 18-wheeler friendly” he said, according to the in memoriam. “There were a lot more four-wheelers on the roads than truck drivers and attracting them became the mission. We made many improvements: physical, cosmetic, those types of things.”
Beyond ensuring aspects, such as bathrooms, were top-quality, Kuhn aimed to make the stores more inviting by partnering with nationally known quick-service restaurants, including Burger King, Popeyes, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. TA now partners with more than 20 QSRs.
