叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 Continues to Expand Beyond Texas
[Stay on top of transportation news: .]
When took his family to the weekend after its grand opening in east Tennessee, they found themselves circling the parking lot.
This new 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚, which about 20 minutes east of Knoxville, is the Texan retailer鈥檚 largest travel center yet. But traffic was still backing up onto Interstate 40, and parking spaces were full.
鈥淲e couldn鈥檛 find an empty one,鈥 Gullion said. 鈥淗onestly the competition was getting a little 鈥榬oad rage鈥 in a couple of places we saw.鈥
It was, by all accounts, a Texas-sized inauguration to beaver fever.
Only a few years ago, it seemed unfathomable that yellow and red 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 beaver signs would tower over highways in Tennessee, Alabama or Florida. After all, North Texas didn鈥檛 even get a 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 until the Fort Worth store opened in 2016, followed by one in Denton. For many years, the privately owned company had kept its footprint largely south of Houston, where it was based.
The Buc-ee's location in Terrell, Texas. (El铆as Valverde II via Tribune Content Agency)
But now the retailer appears to be on a building spree. There are 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 stores coming to northern Colorado, the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, upstate South Carolina, central Ohio and even snowy Wisconsin. , Alabama has four. Florida, Georgia and Tennessee each have two. Kentucky and South Carolina each have one, with second locations in the pipeline.
叠耻肠-别别鈥檚, it seems, intends to become a national force in the highway convenience store industry.
Experts in business and branding strategy say the company has what it takes to succeed far beyond the borders of Texas. 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 has captured what every retailer ultimately covets: A visit to a store is about the experience, not just a transaction, says , vice president of strategic industry initiatives for the .
鈥淵ou walk in and your senses are hit with sound and smell,鈥 Lenard said.
With traditional convenience stores, the mindset is to get one鈥檚 purchases and leave as quickly as possible. The 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 experience is more of a treasure hunt that includes bathrooms touted as the 鈥渨orld鈥檚 cleanest,鈥 fresh barbecue, roasting pecans, vast walls of jerky and candy, unique merchandise and a picture with the beaver mascot, Lenard said.
The Fort Worth 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 along I-35W opened in May 2016 and was the first in North Texas. Gordon Turner, at the breakfast burrito counter, was among the first shoppers. (Paul Moseley/Star-Telegram via Tribune Content Agency)
鈥淭hirty minutes and however many dollars later, you鈥檙e out there smiling, and the experience is not something every retailer can replicate,鈥 Lenard said.
That鈥檚 exactly what Gullion witnessed at the new Tennessee store. Among the throngs of eager shoppers, employees were passing out fudge while other workers at the barbecue station called out, 鈥淔resh brisket!鈥
鈥淭here was a lady who was standing there watching, and every time they did it, she did it too,鈥 said Gullion, who writes for . 鈥淚t was like being at a Grateful Dead concert or something, and she was singing along, 鈥楩resh brisket!鈥 Which is really taking your fandom to the next level.鈥
叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 big plans
The first 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 was a far cry from the sprawling 70,000-square-foot stores of today.
opened his 3,000-square-foot convenience store in 1982 on the border of Clute and Lake Jackson, about 90 minutes south of Houston.
At first, Aplin grew the brand exclusively in Texas, eventually opening about 30 locations and employing thousands of workers. Travelers through Texas got to know and love the brand, which spawned a market of third-party resellers who ship 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 merchandise since the company didn鈥檛.
叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 opened its first travel center outside of Texas in 2019 in Alabama. Since then, the company has grown to employ more than 8,000 people.
Dozens of people lined up before dawn for the May 2016 opening of 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 in Fort Worth, including Tiffany Bonilla,听 who took a group selfie with a bronze beaver statue. (Paul Moseley/Star-Telegram via Tribune Content Agency)
叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 leadership rarely discusses business plans publicly. The company didn鈥檛 respond to several requests for interviews for this story. News of future store locations usually leak only when the company goes to local government boards to seek building permits.
For a March 2019 profile in Texas Monthly, a reporter visited Alpin鈥檚 office in Lake Jackson. It was just after the first 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 opened outside of Texas, and hanging on a wall was a road map of the United States with 鈥渄ozens of thumbtacks鈥 that the writer described as looking like Gen. William T. Sherman鈥檚 march through the South. Each was a possible future location that Alpin thought could succeed based on geography between cities connected by interstates.
Since that story in 2019, 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 has clearly begun its march. And the company appears to be seeing the same successes as it had in Texas.
Lenard, the executive with the National Association of Convenience Stores, said he thinks 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 can sustain its growth as the brand grows nationally.
The Beaver Nuggets are perhaps 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 best-known snack food. (Star-Telegram via Tribune Content Agency)听
鈥淩ight now, the core customer for 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 is not someone who is in the neighborhood and needs a few items,鈥 Lenard said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 for travelers and locals who want an experience 鈥 at an affordable price point.鈥
, an adjunct professor of marketing at the , said 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 customers often experience a 鈥渉alo effect鈥 鈥 a type of cognitive bias where a consumer favors a company because of past positive experiences.
鈥淭he halo effect is the fact that it feels like part of your family,鈥 Orosy said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 an emotional connection beyond the functional component. That鈥檚 true of 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚. You always feel safe, invited, friendly and wanted. You don鈥檛 get that at other convenience stores.鈥
When customers experience the store in person, they can browse Texan-themed home goods and actually bring a little piece of the brand home, Orosy said.
Orosy also said 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 billboard advertising strategy helps customers set expectations on the road, and the brand holds strong pride in the quality of its products and service.
And perhaps part of the secret to 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 success is the chain鈥檚 expansion strategy. The company builds along major highways in high-traffic areas where the real estate is not at a premium, experts say. Its locations are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
鈥淭ake that combination of service quality, product quality and convenience, and they would outrank any of their convenience store competitors,鈥 Orosy said. 鈥淏ecause it鈥檚 easy to get off and on the highway from a 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚.鈥
Thirty minutes and however many dollars later, you鈥檙e out there smiling, and the experience is not something every retailer can replicate.
Jeff Lenard, vice president of strategic industry initiatives for the National Association of Convenience Stores
Image
Customers also say wearing 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 merchandise in public feels like being part of a club. When a person wears 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 swag, somebody is always going to comment on their apparel, start talking to them and share their love of the brand.
鈥淧eople want to be ambassadors to the brand,鈥 Orosy said. 鈥淭hey want to wear a 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 T-shirt or hat to say, 鈥業鈥檓 a fan of 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚!鈥 When you get to that point 鈥 when you have people speaking for and endorsing your brand 鈥 it鈥檚 like you have little micro-influencers of your brand. They execute that package consistently wherever you are.鈥
In the past, people have been willing to drive hours to experience a 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚. But as the chain expands and becomes more common elsewhere in the U.S., it remains to be seen whether the novelty experience may wear off.
Marketing expert Orosy said he anticipates the brand will continue to expand without over saturation.
鈥淭he key is choosing the right locations: high traffic volume, easy off and on access and sizing the store to the expected customer count,鈥 Orosy said. 鈥淪ome 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 are larger than others, for example.鈥
罢补测濒辞谤听
, who helps organizations strategically manage change and lives in San Antonio, said 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 handled consumer travel needs with a white-glove approach. That means focusing on clean restrooms, innovative food and product offerings, and the likeable beaver character.
鈥湹艹-别别鈥檚 made a bold tradeoff when they decided they were going to target customers and not so much the commercial trucking business,鈥 Taylor said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 tough, and you know they took heat over that. But that鈥檚 what it took to create their vision, which seems to have been that white-glove customer experience.鈥
The 鈥渟omewhat silly鈥 beaver character also may be what helps cultivate a cult-like following, Taylor said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 got that bit of whimsy to it, and when you鈥檙e headed on a trip, hopefully you鈥檙e looking for whimsy,鈥 Taylor said. 鈥淚 think people enjoy being part of a group, and when you see a bumper sticker referencing the beaver, it just makes you want to be part of something whimsical and recognizably funny.鈥
For Gullion, the Tennessee travel writer, the 鈥渨himsical鈥 beaver is why his family has stopped at 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 during trips over the years.
鈥淲e knew (叠耻肠-别别鈥檚) would be a place where we can take a break from the monotony of the road trip and just kind of embrace the absurdity of a giant beaver and celebrating bathrooms and just get out of the car and participate in something.鈥
Sevierville, TN is NOW OPEN
170 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 Blvd
Kodak, TN 37764 鈥 Buc-ee's Beaver (@bucees)
When the Sevierville 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 came to Gullion鈥檚 hometown, he wondered whether his attitude about the retailer would change. But after two months, Gullion said the novelty hasn鈥檛 worn off.
鈥淟ocally, I鈥檓 not going to drive 30 minutes out of my way past several perfectly acceptable gas stations for my weekly fill-up, but if I鈥檓 going that way? Sure,鈥 Gullion said. 鈥淯ltimately, I think the 叠耻肠-别别鈥檚 novelty exists and that adds to the fun, but it鈥檚 more than a novelty, right? There鈥檚 a solid business model for a market that has, at least in my experience, been terribly underserved.鈥
Want more news? Listen to today's daily briefing below听or go here for more info:
