Dive Brief:
- Sheetz has revealed details about two more locations in its expansion into Michigan, in addition to its initial site on Wick Road in Romulus that’s set to open later this year, according to an emailed press release.
- The next two locations are slated for Middlebelt Road just north of Interstate 94 in Romulus and 23 Mile Road just east of Interstate 94 in Chesterfield.
- This expansion in Michigan, along with plans to move into the Asheville area of North Carolina in 2024, supports the company’s goal of reaching 1,000 stores.
Dive Insight:
Sheetz has “ambitious plans to grow” in Michigan, Brian Dinges, assistant vice president of real estate for the convenience retailer, said in a statement in June. This includes plans to build more than 60 stores in southeast Michigan, said Scott Armstrong, senior real estate site selector with Sheetz, during a Livonia, Michigan, Planning Commission meeting on Jan. 16.
While the Wick Road location is expected to open in the latter half of this year, opening dates for the other two sites have not yet been determined. The Chesterfield site is about 30 miles northeast of downtown Detroit while Romulus is about 22 miles west of the city.
Other sites in the state are also in the process of gaining approval. However, local reporting notes sites in Fraser and Livonia are facing some speedbumps.
Dinges said that all of Sheetz’s Michigan sites will feature a “restaurant-style experience” with made-to-order foodservice, indoor and outdoor seating, self-service kiosks and drive-thrus.
In North Carolina, the company plans for about five locations in the Asheville market over the next few years. The company also has plans to open more stores in several areas of Ohio, as well, including its first stores in Toledo and additional locations in the Columbus and Dayton markets.
Altoona, Pennsylvania-based Sheetz owns and operates more than 700 stores in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland, and employs more than 25,000 people. The 70-year-old company’s locations are all open all day, every day.
