The Indiana Corn Marketing Council is committed to promoting and making higher-ethanol fuel blends available for consumers in Indiana.
Through checkoff investments, the Indiana Corn Marketing Council works with retailers to promote infrastructure updates to include these higher blends of ethanol. ICMC and Valparaiso, Ind.-based retailer Family Express have been working together for more than a decade.
In a recent visit to Family Express, Gus Olympidis, Family Express President and CEO, told ICMC about the company’s expansion and continued support of renewable fuels, the agriculture industry, and Indiana farmers.
Family Express is expanding its footprint and updating its colonial style with a contemporary look to appeal to a younger demographic. The retailer is building up to 20 new convenience stores, serviced by its central distribution facility. The company has been adding car washes and with an enhanced focus on food service, it has been adding kitchens to many stores.
He says the company is in a good position for expansion.
“Family Express has been debt free for a number of years in an industry that is remarkably capital intensive. We have made a strategic decision to grow and you’re going to see it unfolding in the next few months. We’re building our land bank, closing on sites, and tweaking our prototype,” he says. “It was a difficult thing for us to let the classical colonial look go. It defined us for about 30 years. It was the anti-convenience store look and looked more like a bank. It helped solidify the image that we have in the marketplace as a convenience store that also sells fuel.”
Family Express operates convenience stores in northwest and central Indiana. Olympidis says that Family Express is currently exploring acquisition opportunities.
Click here to read more incornandsoy.org
Photo Credit: gettyimages-klosfoto
Categories: Indiana, Crops, Corn