The name Circle K comes from a chain of more than 2,000 convenience stores Couche-Tard operates across the United States.
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“Today we may be a little bit of distant cousins being from different banners and different companies”.
“Today we are setting out to make it easy for existing and new customers in more countries than ever before to prefer Circle K as their destination for convenience and fuel”, CEO Brian Hannasch said.
A Couche-Tard executive told the Canadian Press that the switch in brand will speed the introduction of new products across its network of convenience stores. It will also generate unspecified cost savings.
However, it will retain its founding Couche-Tard retail brand in Quebec.
“The notoriety of the brand is so strong here”. In 1999, as part of the Silcorp Ltd. chain, it was acquired by Couche-Tard.
The change will see the disappearance of Scandinavia’s Statoil store brand acquired in 2012 and The Pantry’s Kangaroo Express, bought a year ago .
Circle K is already Couch-Tard’s most widely used store banner, mainly in the US , along with 12 other countries. In general the name change seems gone well with the Norwegians and according to Couche-Tard the name changes will be roled out first in Norway and Sweden and then throughout their markets.
The Circle K brand licensed in stores across Asia is part of Couche-Tard’s future growth plans but Hannasch wouldn’t say if it’s a precursor to a large expansion or acquisition.
The Macs brand has a long history in Ontario and across Western Canada.
Mac’s stores have been part of Calgary and Alberta’s landscape for more than 50 years, but that’s about to change.
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Couche-Tard’s network is made up of 7,987 stores throughout North America, including locations in 41 states.
