Dive Brief:
- Midwest convenience retailer Brew Oil has acquired 13 retail fuel sites and one smoke shop in Iowa, Kolby Jones, owner of advisory firm KJ Acquisitions, which coordinated the deal, confirmed to C-Store Dive.
- The seller is Indianola, Iowa-based Danlee Corp., which is exiting the industry, Jones said. Most of the sites are located in central Iowa, but one is in the northwest part of the state, he added.
- The deal will bring Brew’s c-store footprint to nearly 50 locations across its home state of Iowa, helping the retailer become one of the bigger independent c-store retailers in the area.
Dive Insight:
Most of the 13 c-stores were branded under the Phillips 66 fuel banner or as Jiffy, Jones said. He added that Brew acquired the lease to one site and bought all property and real estate assets for the rest.
Danlee, meanwhile, is exiting the industry after close to 20 years in business, Jones said. The company was founded by Dan Mullers and Lee Adams, who worked at Kum & Go earlier in their careers, Jones added.
According to its website, Brew has 35 locations across central and northwest Iowa, with a particular focus on Des Moines, Marshalltown and Sioux City. Representatives from Brew did not respond by press time when asked to comment on what its latest transaction means for its growth plans.
The deal is a needed win for Brew, which shuttered about 20 stores two years ago. Roughly 15 of the sites ceased operations after Brew was unable to renegotiate the leases with investment group InCommercial, which purchased the properties from since-defunct Mountain Express Oil. The 15 sites that Brew operated were owned by Mountain Express, which had all its leases terminated in late 2023 as part of Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings.
Brew’s latest acquisition continues a busy year for convenience retailers in Iowa. Utah-based Maverik and Texas-based Yesway have both sold dozens of c-stores in the state over the past few months, many of which were acquired by regional operators like Mega Saver and Fast Stop of Louisiana.
