According to Supply Chain Dive, several major convenience store chains signed significant new agreements with key suppliers this past year to standardize their offerings. Wawa expanded its partnership with McLane in April to support growth in Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio, utilizing McLane’s distribution center in Hebron, Kentucky.

Read also: Retailers Adapt Strategies as AI Agents Reshape Holiday Shopping

In August, Onvo announced it would work with Core-Mark, a division of Performance Food Group, to supply its roughly 40 travel centers in New York and Pennsylvania. Loves Travel Stops & Country Stores expanded its agreement with Core-Mark in September, bringing all of its more than 640 locations under the supplier’s umbrella.

The largest distribution announcement came from Alimentation Couche-Tard, which inked an agreement with McLane for third-party logistics to enhance control and efficiency.

Distribution Center Expansions Mark the Year

New distribution infrastructure was a key theme of 2025. As part of its deal with McLane, Couche-Tard opened the first of three new distribution centers in Otsego, Minnesota, in November. A second McLane-operated center in Hazelwood, Missouri, is anticipated by year’s end, with a final one in Lockbourne, Ohio, planned for January 2026. These three facilities will supply around 1,600 stores in 14 states.

RaceTrac opened a 40,000-square-foot, $9 million distribution center in Geismar, Louisiana, in May. Kwik Trip opened a 280,000-square-foot facility on Nov. 4, which serves 350 locations and includes specialized storage and banana ripening rooms.

Sheetz provided an update in early December on its $160 million distribution center project in Findlay, Ohio, stating it is on track for a fall 2026 opening to support expansions in Ohio and Michigan.

Supplier Activity and Consolidation

The year also saw notable activity from suppliers themselves. McLane unveiled a new commissary program featuring products like subs, sliders, salads, parfaits, and fruit cups. Furthermore, SpartanNash was acquired by C&S Wholesale Grocers, creating a combined company with almost 60 distribution centers serving about 10,000 independent retail locations.

Caseys Closes Acquired Distribution Arm

Not all supply chain news involved new ventures. In April, Caseys shuttered JF Heritage Food Company, the distribution arm of Fikes Wholesale it had acquired in late 2024. JF Heritage, which began as a kolache bakery inside a CEFCO store in West Texas in 2018, had opened a 60,000-square-foot facility in Belton, Texas, in 2021.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform