Convenience retailer to invest $1B in food-focused travel plazas

Convenience retailer Applegreen said it is investing $1 billion in growing its food-focused travel plazas. | Photo courtesy: Applegreen

Dublin-based convenience-store retailer Applegreen is investing more than $1 billion over the next five years to expand its business in Ireland and the United States. Its U.S. focus includes building larger travel plazas where food is “at the heart of the offer,” Applegreen co-founder and Group Chief Executive Joe Barrett said. 

It will also invest in its Welcome Break motorway service station business in Britain, its M&S Food business in Ireland and its growing electric vehicle (EV) charging network across all geographies, the company said. 

“This is a very significant expansion program for Applegreen, as we continue to invest to expand our business in Ireland, the United States and the U.K.,” Barrett (pictured below) said. “Applegreen plans to invest [$1.05 billion] in the business over the next five years as we redevelop our sites and grow our operations, both organically and through acquisitions. Our current operations provide a very strong foundation on which to build the next phase of growth for Applegreen in each of its three markets.”   

Applegreen operates more than 100 motorway service areas in the United States.

“Our focus is on growing our travel plaza business in the U.S., particularly on the East Coast,” Barrett said. “We currently have 106 travel plazas in states such as New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maine, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Ohio and Indiana, and we are very keen to expand our presence there building upon our established and trusted relationships with the roads authorities.” 

Food is the main element of Applegreen’s U.S. business, it said, where it operates restaurant and café brands including Burger King, Shake Shack, Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, Starbucks, Dunkin, Panera Bread and Panda Express.

It has more than 700 food outlets in total, including 300 in the United States. Traditional fuel now accounts for less than 20% of its gross profit, Barrett said. 

“In the U.S., we are focusing on larger sites, where food is at the heart of the offer,” he said. “We are fortunate in that we have a unique position in the U.S. market, as we are a highly experienced operator of food businesses, convenience stores, EV [electric vehicle] charging infrastructure and traditional gas filing stations. Most other operators in the states cannot offer that ‘one-stop shop’ for road authorities.”

Applegreen also said it is investing heavily in its EV charging network—which has more than 1,200 fast chargers, both company- and third-party owned—at more than 130 of its locations in Ireland, the U.K. and the United States. Applegreen intends to invest more than $89.2 million over the next five years to expand its EV network. 

Applegreen’s gross profit increased by 9% to about $1 billion last year. EBITDA (earnings before tax, depreciation and amortization) increased by almost 7% to about $284.3 million during that same period. 

Revenues from Applegreen’s food operations and c-store business increased 11% during the year, the company said. 

“We are currently in growth mode and are investing for the long-term strategic success of the business,” Barrett said. 

Irish convenience-store retailer Applegreen, the holding company of Petrogas Group U.S. Inc., Plainview, New York, made its U.S. debut in 2014 after opening its first sites in New York state. It made its Top 202 debut in 2019 after a series of acquisitions increased its store count. The U.S. business includes sites in the North, Midwest and Southeast under the Shell, Exxon, Mobil, Sunoco, BP, Chevron, Holiday, Freedom and Speedway fuel brands. It has about 240 stores in the United States as of year-end 2023. 

In July, Applegreen said it was nearly finished with its $450 million project to upgrade and modernize all 27 service areas on the New York State Thruway.

This story originally appeared in Restaurant Business sister publication CSP Daily News. 

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