Dive Brief:
- RaceTrac has been approved to build a convenience store in Delaware, Ohio — its first location in the state — according to a recent hearing by the Delaware Planning Commission.
- This will be a “new RaceTrac prototype that looks very different” from the retailer’s stores in other markets, Brendan Sexton, lead engineering project manager for RaceTrac, said during the hearing. The 6,000-square-foot store will feature 13 fueling islands and 34 parking spaces.
- The store will be located on State Route 37, west of Davidson lane. RaceTrac has “a few more steps” to take before it begins construction, Sexton said.
Dive Insight:
The approval of RaceTrac’s first Ohio store comes about seven months after the retailer proposed the location to the Delaware Planning Commission. At the time, RaceTrac noted that this location would bring jobs for 25 to 30 employees, and include outdoor seating for up to 16 people.
While RaceTrac also noted during the January hearing that this store would feature its typical expanded food offerings — such as sandwiches, pizza, hot foods and its Swirl World frozen yogurt stations — Sexton said during the latest meeting that made-to-order food will not be offered.
Instead, this store focuses on efficiency, he said.
“We want it to be a frictionless process when you visit our store,” Sexton said. “That's why the site is large, offers very comfortable maneuverability. We want you to be able to comfortably get on the site, fuel up, go into the store, use the restroom, get whatever food you'd like and get out as quickly as possible just to make your morning commute or whatever your travels are convenient.”
Despite the spacious forecourt, this site “is not pegged for electric vehicle charging at the moment,” Sexton said. He noted that RaceTrac will have its first EV charging stations up and running within the next month or two, and that the company is actively keeping EV charging “and all other alternative fuels in mind for the future.”
Sexton did not specify any other details during the hearing about what makes this RaceTrac different from the rest of its store network. However, he emphasized that it’s more attractive than other RaceTrac stores.
“I will admit that this looks better than how it does in other markets,” Sexton said. “So I'm looking forward to putting this into the ground.”
Founded in 1934, Atlanta-based RaceTrac owns and operates 566 convenience stores in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Tennessee. When including its c-store subsidiary RaceWay, the retailer also operates over 200 additional locations in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas and Texas.
