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Image courtesy of the City of Springfield, MO
You see it miles and miles before you get to the exit. A billboard with a goofy-looking beaver, a puny saying, and the distance you have remaining to get to that special exit. When you finally reach a Buc-ee’s (and park your car), you’re transported to a place that’s massive in scope. Less like a 7-Eleven and more like a Target, Buc-ee’s is not just a chain of gas stations and country stores; it’s a cultural phenomenon. The Texas-based business opened its first store in Clute, Texas, in 1982. The founder, Arch “Beaver” Aplin, created the name Buc-ee’s by combining his childhood nickname and his dog’s name, Buck. Over 40 years later, Buc-ee’s is a cult classic among travelers and brisket enthusiasts alike.
When a community leader sees a Buc-ee’s, they may see revenue, economic impact, and new jobs. In Texas alone, Buc-ee’s stores generated $641 million of economic impact, supported nearly 5,000 jobs, and generated $13.4 million in indirect sales tax. Now you may wonder, “How do I get a Buc-ee’s to come to my town?”
Image courtesy of the City of Springfield, MO
Chances are you’ve seen billboards advertising for Buc-ee’s while driving throughout the United States. Many of these locations can be found far away from major metro areas. Communities such as Fort Valley, Georgia, Robertsdale, Alabama, and Florence, South Carolina, are home to a Buc-ee’s location. These locations may seem random, but it’s all a part of the company’s strategy for site selection.
The company primarily scouts for locations with a sufficient volume of travelers passing through their area, according to Jeff Nadalo, Buc-ee’s general counsel.
“Secondly, we look for jurisdictions that are friendly to business. Then, we are also looking for locations where there’s a good workforce,” Nadalo says.
Buc-ee’s tends to choose locations outside major cities because most travelers don’t stop immediately after leaving their front door. “[Travelers] want to stop well into their journey,” Nadalo says. “Having locations that are a reasonable distance between where they’re headed and where they’ve come from makes sense.”
For their part, Nadalo says Buc-ee’s brings a “very robust” sales tax to these communities, revenue that might not have otherwise reached the area. Additionally, the company typically requires substantial improvement to existing resources in the area—such as utilities or roadways.
“Those improvements and enhancements come at a cost,” Nadalo says. “And, so obviously, we look to the local areas to partner with us to make it economically viable to build a site in their location.”
Buc-ee’s first location in the Rockies will open in Johnstown, Colorado (pop. 18,636) in March 2024. The company reached out to the town in 2021, inquiring about expanding into Colorado, Sarah Crosthwaite, Johnstown Economic Development Manager, says.
Crosthwaite says Johnstown quickly started conversations with Buc-ee’s about its business, customer base, and sales tax revenue. Crosthwaite and other Johnstown employees visited a Buc-ee’s for “due diligence” to their community before bringing the request to the city council.
One of the incentives Buc-ee’s requested was a timeline, which Crosthwaite says communities often don’t even consider as an incentive. Buc-ee’s wanted to know, as they were submitting plans throughout the process, that Johnstown would submit and provide feedback in a timely manner.
The other incentive the company requested was specific sales tax revenue, which Buc-ee’s often does in the communities where they are located, Crosthwaite says.
“Buc-ee’s, for us, and its location is a catalyst for the future development of that corridor, which is Highway 60… As you go further south along our Highway 60 corridor, for a very long time, there wasn’t much development happening there,” Crosthwaite says. “The town made a lot of investments in terms of our utilities infrastructure, which helped facilitate the development of Buc-ee’s.”
Image courtesy of the City of Springfield, MO
Nestled off I-44, between St. Louis and Oklahoma City is the city of Springfield (pop. 170,067), home to the first Buc-ee’s in Missouri.
Springfield Director of Economic Vitality Amanda Ohlensehlen says the new Buc-ee’s will generate new sales tax revenue for the city, provide quality jobs with strong wages and benefits, and open up additional land for development along the I-44 corridor.
“This is a really strategic and important project for the city of Springfield, and it’s opening up nearly 1,000 acres of land north of I-44 with the extension of critical infrastructure,” Ohlensehlen says.
Through research and estimates provided by Buc-ee’s, Ohlensehlen says the new location will serve around six million customers annually, with 80 percent of that customer base traveling more than 20 miles away, providing Springfield with sales tax revenue to help fund “critical services” in the city.
The Springfield City Council approved an infrastructure reimbursement agreement for the Buc-ee’s project that helps fund public and community improvements, Ohlensehlen says.
Ohlensehlen expresses that the feedback about Buc-ee’s in Springfield has been positive. Across all city departments, people have been asking about the new location, how to apply for jobs, and other information.
“Even though we may not have a direct role in some of those questions, we certainly are fielding inquiries regularly,” Ohlensehlen says. “So it does seem like there is a lot of excitement here locally for Buc-ee’s.”
While Buc-ee’s growth has previously been slow, the company is ramping up in the coming year. Along with stores in Missouri and Colorado, Buc-ee’s is also adding stores in Kentucky, two more in Texas, and what will become the world’s largest franchise location in Ocala, Florida (40 minutes south of the University of Florida.) And while more stores mean more delicious brisket, it also means major economic impact for small communities.
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