Yesway to acquire Allsup's

CLOVIS — After months of rumors, Allsup’s Convenience Stores Inc. told its employees Oct. 8 an equity firm that operates Iowa-based convenience store chain Yesway is acquiring it.

The deal for 304 locations, announced via a Yesway news release that morning, is subject to regulatory approval and closing conditions.

Allsup’s has stores in Tucumcari and Logan in Quay County, while Yesway operates a store in San Jon it acquired in September 2018.

“We are very excited to have selected Yesway as the acquirer of our company and the future custodian of our brand and legacy,” stated Mark Allsup, Allsup’s president, in the Yesway release. “We chose Yesway as a partner because their values are truly aligned with ours. They share our commitment to support the local communities we serve, our unwavering pledge to our customers to provide them with a terrific shopping experience, and our dedication to the success and well-being of our employees.”

Yesway chairman and CEO Thomas Nicholas Trkla said the stores will continue to operate under the Allsup’s brand, and the company intends to keep a corporate office in Clovis.

“Store personnel will not change, and there are no plans to close stores,” Trkla stated in an email Wednesday to the Quay County Sun.

The News acquired a letter sent to Allsup’s employees announcing the change.

“It has not been a secret that we have been exploring a potential transaction over the past year or longer,” the letter stated. “Our top priority was to find a partner for this transaction that would be a good fit for our company, a responsible steward of the wonderful company that you and our family have built over the past 63 years.”

According to the letter, longtime vice president of finance Barbara Allsup will retire, and Mark Allsup will stay on board in a management and advisory role to ensure a smooth transition.

“Allsup’s founders Lonnie and Barbara Allsup were true pioneers, innovators, and visionaries of convenience store retailing,” Trkla stated in a release. “They were the first to offer customers hot, cooked foods, self-serve gasoline sales and 24-hour service. We could not be more pleased to be joining forces with such a strong, beloved company and talented team of employees.”

Trkla added. “We look forward to building on Allsup’s legendary heritage and continuing to offer many of the amazing products and services Allsup’s customers are so passionate about, including — without question — the world-famous Allsup’s Burrito.”

Allsup’s founder, Lonnie Allsup, died in 2018, leaving a legacy that started with one store in 1956 in Roswell and includes more than 300 stores, with 3,000 employees, in about 160 communities throughout Texas and New Mexico.

The Iowa Park (Texas) Leader reported in late August the chain had sold nine of its Texas locations to a Georgia company, and those locations would be operated as Hop-In stores.

Yesway, ranked No. 6 on the Convenience Store News top 20 growth chains for 2019, plans to assemble a portfolio comprising more than 500 convenience stores in selected regions of the United States over the next several years.

QCS Senior Writer Ron Warnick contributed to this story.