tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10642706.post3857769977575412803..comments2024-02-25T03:52:26.176-06:00Comments on Signalwriter: Yipes! Stripes!Richard Laurence Baronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14971141017467268455noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10642706.post-24737756252549900122007-09-22T06:12:00.000-05:002007-09-22T06:12:00.000-05:00Merci beaucoup, Leigh – and thanks for the directi...Merci beaucoup, Leigh – and thanks for the direction. Readers, check http://www.couche-tard.qc.ca under “Business Units” and note:<BR/><BR/>“The Company has over 3,000 stores in the United States, which are located in 29 states. The stores are primarily operated under the Circle K® banner. The simple and ongoing renovations carried out in the Circle K stores make them easy to identify.<BR/><BR/>“In addition to the North American Couche-Tard network, there are approximately 3,500 Circle K licensed stores located in seven other regions worldwide (Japan, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Guam, Macao and Mexico).”<BR/><BR/>Susser has been a licensee of Circle K: “We completed our rebranding initiative, in which we converted our stores from the Circle K brand to the Stripes brand, during the first quarter of 2007. We spent approximately $8 million on this initiative, of which $4.5 million was spent in 2006 and the balance in 2007. We paid $3.6 million in royalty expense for the use of the Circle K brand for the twelve months ended December 31, 2006. Royalty expense for the first quarter of 2007 was $66 thousand as we completed the rebranding, and is eliminated beginning the second quarter of 2007.” By creating its own brand, Susser chucks the royalty expense off its balance sheet, spending a couple of years’ worth of royalties to rebrand.<BR/><BR/>There’s an extra item. Susser announced yesterday that it is acquiring Town & Country Food Stores, which operates 168 C-stores in West Texas and Eastern New Mexico. So the company’s going to be juggling a lot of retail brands.Richard Laurence Baronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14971141017467268455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10642706.post-4543068078820791792007-09-22T05:44:00.000-05:002007-09-22T05:44:00.000-05:00Hi, Richard: I’m a little confused about the refe...Hi, Richard: I’m a little confused about the reference to Susser rebranding the stores, since hereabouts [Quebec, Canada] we were of the opinion that Susser sold off Circle K, then ConocoPhillips in turn sold it to Alimentation Couche-Tard, which owns a variety of convenience outlets, and by the thousands. Did Susser buy back some stores? Is Couche-Tard trying out a new brand? It’s not clear to me how Susser fits in:<BR/> http://www.answers.com/topic/circle-k<BR/><BR/>"Circle K is a trademark owned by Quebec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard, which acquired it from ConocoPhillips in 2004, to designate a chain of company operated and franchised convenience stores in the United States."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com