3 Big Numbers is a weekly column that looks at a few key details from around the c-store industry.
So far, 2026 has had a plethora of acquisitions for the convenience retail industry to celebrate. Among the biggest headlines, Stinker Stores sold 12 locations and Pops Mart divvied up 54 stores among three buyers, including Sunoco, which also bought the convenience retail division of Jernigan Oil Company. There have been several smaller deals as well.
In this week’s “3 Big Numbers,” we look closer at one of those headlines as well as two others from around the convenience store industry in recent weeks.
3
The number of states Ridi Stores now operates within after acquiring McIntosh Energy.
An acquisition is a great way for a retailer to expand into new markets. Ridi Stores became the latest example of this when it bought McIntosh Energy, adding its four c-stores and one fleet fueling location in Indiana to the company’s existing footprint of c-stores and car washes in Ohio and Michigan.
McIntosh’s MacFood Mart locations will be rebranded to Ridi’s “in the near future,” the companies said. Ridi also will take over McIntosh’s bulk fuel delivery operations and Pacific Pride fleet card services.
While this deal brought Ridi’s into a new state, it’s far from the company’s first encounter with M&A. Since 2019, Ridi has acquired at least one c-store, travel center or car wash every year except for 2023.
$500 million
The amount Sunoco has set aside for bolt-on acquisitions annually.
Sunoco is no stranger to M&A. The company made the biggest deal in the convenience retail space last year, spending $9.1 billion to buy Parkland Corp’s. and all its fuel and c-store assets.
So far this year, the energy giant also has bought 36 c-stores and the wholesale business from Pops Mart Fuels and 56 Duck Thru sites from Jernigan Oil Company.
Sunoco revealed in its fourth-quarter earnings that it has at least $500 million earmarked for further M&A activity this year and that doesn’t include any larger deals it might seek. That money could go to expanding its fuel business — that was what executives said drew the company to Parkland. But the Duck Thru and Pops Mart deals show that Sunoco is not afraid to beef up the retail side too.
70
The rough number of deals Matrix Capital Markets has advised on since 2021.
Matrix Capital Markets Group, an advisory firm focused on the energy and convenience retail sectors, has helped the industry navigate M&A for years.
Matrix has helped more than 70 convenience retail companies close M&A agreements in just the past five years. In 2025, the firm was the sell-side advisor on transactions, such as Alimentation Couche-Tard’s deals for GetGo Cafe + Market and Hutch’s, Jacksons Food Stores’ purchase of Redwood Market and Sampson-Bladen Oil’s purchase of the Breez Thru c-stores.
Citizens Financial Group announced this week that it was acquiring Matrix for an undisclosed amount. New ownership is not expected to change Matrix’s role in advising convenience retailers, according to leaders from Citizen. Matrix will operate as its own division of the financial company.
