As it revealed plans to pursue an IPO earlier this month, Cumberland Farms also laid out a significant roadmap to rebrand most of its U.S. C-store network to its namesake banner, C Store Dive reports.
The company intends to convert up to 700 stores over the next five years. But this rebranding initiative has been in the works for years. Judging by the sluggish progress, it’ll need to pick up the pace substantially.
The first signs of this effort emerged in February 2022, when the company, then operating as EG America, announced plans to rebrand all 113 of its Tom Thumb convenience stores in Florida and Alabama.
In addition to the name over the door, changes included a new store design, layout and equipment, along with expanded foodservice offerings. At the time, EG anticipated the $50 million project would begin that May and take 18 to 24 months to complete, putting the estimated completion date no later than May 2024.
But four years on, fewer than half of those stores have been converted. That’s fewer than 20 rebrands per year since the initiative began, a pace that falls well short of the 120 to 140 annual conversions the company now says it expects to complete over the next five years.
Full story Fueling Up: Cumberland Farms wants a national brand. It has a long way to go. | C-Store Dive
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