Uppy's Acquired by Mid-Atlantic Convenience Stores

RICHMOND, Va. And GREENWICH, Conn. -- The newly formed investment platform, Mid-Atlantic Convenience Stores (MACS), acquired a majority interest in Uppy's Convenience Stores Inc. along with 170 convenience stores and fuel stations from the Exxon Mobil Corp.

As a result of the deal, MACS, which is backed by private equity firm Catterton Partners, will be a leading convenience store operator in the Mid-Atlantic region with more than 200 convenience stores in Maryland, Virginia and Delaware, according to the equity firm. MACS was created to acquire convenience stores in the highly fragmented c-store industry, the company stated.

"MACS is a growing platform with an attractive portfolio of stores, a strong retail offering for consumers and a highly-experienced management team," Nik Thukral, partner at Catterton Partners, said in a statement. "We believe it is an attractive time for Catterton to enter the industry, as the economics of convenience stores are increasingly driven by non-fuel retail sales. Moreover, there are significant opportunities for future consolidation as MACS seeks to achieve scale in the highly fragmented convenience store industry."

As a result of the transaction, MACS will be the largest ExxonMobil fuel marketer in the United States. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

MACS will be operated by an experienced management team and is positioned to grow both organically and via acquisitions, the company stated. Uppy's founder and CEO, Steve Uphoff, has partnered with Catterton, and will remain CEO of MACS with a substantial financial interest, according to the company.

"We are pleased to complete this transaction, which will immediately enhance our footprint and solidify our position in the Mid-Atlantic states," Uphoff said in a statement. "Catterton has a strong record of partnering with entrepreneurs to build successful growth enterprises. We look forward to benefiting from Catterton's retail and consumer expertise as we work together to grow the business, optimize our operations, expand our retail offering and develop a deeper connection to customers. We are excited about this transaction and believe it will lead to accelerated growth, enhanced service and additional product offerings for our customers, greater benefits for the communities we serve and increased opportunities for our employees."

The 44-unit Uppy's was founded in 1995 as a single retail convenience store in Richmond. In November 2009, the company's Southside Oil division entered agreements to acquire 172 Exxon sites in Maryland. That deal was nearing completion, CSNews Online reported earlier this month.

MACS properties operate on prime retail sites in desirable geographies with strong demographic trends, and generate superior operating metrics significantly above industry averages, Catterton stated.

Related News:

Southside Nears Completion of Part of Exxon Acquisition

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