RaceTrac
 | This article contains promotional content. (August 2008) |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail (convenience stores) |
| Founded | 1934 |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, GA |
Key people | Carl Bolch Jr, Owner/CEO |
Number of employees | 4,000+ |
| Website | www.racetrac.com |
RaceTrac Petroleum, Inc. is a American corporation that operates a chain of gasoline stations and convenience stores across the Southern United States. The company was founded by Carl Bolch Sr. in 1934 in St. Louis, Missouri. The original stores operated under the name Carl Bolch Trackside Stations, with the strategy to be independent from other major oil companies and thus be able to consistently offer lower-priced gasoline to the public. Bolch relocated and acquired the Oil Well Company of Opp, Alabama, which consisted of numerous independent stores located across rural Alabama.
The current Chief Executive Officer, Carl Bolch Jr., joined the company in Montgomery, Alabama in 1967 where he expanded the company throughout the South and into Texas. After pioneering the concept of self-service gasoline in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, the company relocated in 1976 to Atlanta, Georgia and adopted the brand “RaceTrac” for its company-operated stores. Contractor-operated stores remain branded RaceWay. The RaceTrac stores quickly became known for their low-priced gas and newer, clean facilities.
RaceTrac Petroleum, Inc. now operates over 525 retail gasoline convenience stores in 12 southeastern states under the RaceTrac, RaceWay, and KashKing names. A standard RaceTrac features 20-24 fueling positions and a 4000 plus square foot convenience store, featuring over 4000 items. By 2005, revenues had grown to over $4 billion. Today, RaceTrac is Georgia’s third largest private company with sales of $4.9 billion in 2007.
RaceTrac’s key to success in the 1990’s was its cash-only, low price, high volume strategy. While their stores now accept credit and debit cards, their strategy continues to focus on getting customers inside the store to purchase high margin items. RaceTrac's strong brand equity, built over years of consistently delivering the lowest prices and fastest service in the industry, is a key contributor to the company's high volume traffic and profitability.
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RaceTrac Location
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Sandwich Cooler inside a RaceTrac store -
New RaceTrac Storefront
Stores and Offerings
RaceTrac locations:
- Florida
- Georgia
- Louisiana
- Texas
- Mississippi
RaceWay locations:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Virginia
Each RaceTrac location offers a variety in food, drink, tobacco, and miscellaneous items. Every store has fresh food selections available all day including hot breakfast sandwiches and biscuits, fresh donuts and pastries, hot dogs, taquitos, corn dogs, egg rolls, burritos, calzones, and cookies. Plus, RaceTrac has a sandwich cooler with a wide selection of sandwiches, fruit, salads, yogurt, and side items. RaceTrac is known to have one of the largest selections of any convenience store in the South. The soda pop dispensing machine has 36 stations all different drinks.
Along with offering other retailer’s gift cards at each store, RaceTrac has their own gift cards and credit cards that can be purchased and used for gas or on any item in the store. The gift cards can be purchased in the stores and their balance can be checked and updated on their website at anytime.
Promotions and Rewards
RaceTrac offers different promotions and events that are listed on their website by region.[1] As well as local promotions, any RaceTrac customer can sign up for their Rewards Program online and receive a different coupon for free items every month.[2] From drink specials and food coupons to cigarette and beer deals, every RaceTrac location always has a current promotion or event.
Community Affairs
RaceTrac has many community initiatives that give back to the neighborhoods where their customers and employees work and live. They encourage community involvement efforts and participation in organizations that are important to their customers and employees. RaceTrac donates their time, energy, and financial support in a variety of ways that include in-store programs, sponsored events, volunteerism, and are especially focused on those initiates, such as local school fundraisers and athletic and educational programs, that touch the lives of local youths. Specifically, RaceTrac has partnered with the American Red Cross, Hands on Atlanta, Junior Achievement of Georgia, the Salvation Army, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association, along with many local events and philanthropies. In addition, RaceTrac sponsors many of the popular athletic teams that its customers support. These teams include the Texas Rangers, Gwinnett Gladiators, Florida Gators and Dallas Mavericks, just to name a few.[3]
Awards
Ranked #61 on Forbes’s list of The Largest Private Companies in 2007 Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).