Dive Brief:
- Anabi Oil, parent company of Rebel Convenience Stores, has acquired 12 convenience stores from California-based C&J Cox Corporation, according to an announcement from Matrix Capital Markets, which coordinated the deal.
- The deal includes nine c-stores in the Tri-Valley region, located near the San Francisco Bay area, and three in the Lake Tahoe area, according to the announcement. All locations operate under the Cox Family Stores banner and sell fuel under the Shell, Chevron and Valero brands.
- Anabi has now acquired around 100 stores in the past couple months, making the California company one of the fastest-growing regional convenience retailers in the country.
Dive Insight:
Anabi, which operates over 500 locations, mainly through its Rebel Convenience Stores banner, has significantly ramped up its store growth over the past year. In June 2024, the company bought 17 c-stores in Florida, and just two months ago purchased the 87-store Green Valley Grocery chain in Nevada. With small and mid-size M&A continuing to dominate the c-store industry, Anabi’s latest moves signal that the company considers itself a growing competitive threat. Its latest deal closed on Nov. 12.
It’s not clear if Anabi will rebrand Cox’s stores to the Rebel banner. A Matrix spokesperson did not respond by press time when asked about this. Anabi is not rebranding the Green Valley Grocery sites it acquired back in October.
Sam Anabi, founder of the Upland, California-based company, said he wants to preserve the customer trust that Cox has built through its nearly 50 years in business.
“Because these sites were already operated with such discipline and pride, the transition has been exceptionally smooth: strong teams remain in place and service continues uninterrupted,” Anabi said in the announcement.
Cox Family Stores will continue to own and operate two locations in the Tri-Valley region that were not part of the transaction.
