New Pitt Stop operators to be headquartered in Lexington

As Bob Brandi grew the Pitt Stop convenience store chain from a two-bar Texaco station in Ballentine in 1974, he made a commitment to local ownership, local employees and contributions to local charities and schools.

When he sold the company with 34 convenience stores and eight Burger King restaurants last week, he made sure the new operators – Irish chain Applegreen – would continue that tradition. Applegreen, which now has only six U.S. stores, all in Long Island, N.Y., is opening its Southeastern headquarters in Lexington and plans to grow its East Coast business from there, Brandi said.

Applegreen operates 232 stores in Ireland.

“They fit like a glove,” Brandi told The State. “They started with two partners about 25 years ago. They treat their employees like they want to be treated and they give back to the community, just like we do.

“That’s why I was very careful choosing the company,” he added. “I’m going to stay here in Lexington and watch them grow.”

Under the terms of the transaction, Applegreen will operate the stores under a long-term lease agreement with New York’s Getty Oil, which purchased the real estate.

Getty announced Wednesday it bought the 42 stores for $70.1 million. Brandi said that figure does not reflect the his deal with Applegreen, but would not elaborate.

The deal is to close by the end of the year.

“We consider the Brandi Group to be an excellent fit for our business given the attraction and convenience of its locations (centered) in the city of Columbia, together with the significant component of food-to-go offers,” Joe Barrett, Applegreen’s chief operations officer, said in a news release. “It also represents an ideal platform from which to further pursue our strategy for growth along the East Coast of the U.S.”

Brandi said the stores will continue to be called Pitt Stop, for now.

“Our stores are in excellent condition,” he said. “When they build new locations they will probably use their concept.”

Applegreen added in the release that all Brandi employees will be retained, but they will joined by a small integration team from the company.

“All of our people will remain in the positions they’re in, plus their profit sharing and even seniority,” Brandi said. “And that is about unheard of.”

Brandi, 66, said the sale is bittersweet.

“I enjoyed building the locations and being able to hire people who were sincere and willing to do a good job and support their families,” he said. “But it was time for me to step aside and let someone else grow the company.”

This story was originally published July 13, 2017 at 5:05 PM with the headline "New Pitt Stop operators to be headquartered in Lexington."