Couche-Tard to remodel stores in Canada and U.S.
Alimentation Couche-Tard is looking to give locations in Canada and the United States a refreshed look in a continuing effort to improve margins.
Brian Hannasch, who will be retiring as president and chief executive of Laval, Quebec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard in September, said during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call last month that it plans to remodel some 80% of Circle K convenience stores in the U.S. and Canada.
Couche-Tard operates over 16,700 stores across 31 countries and territories.
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“As we look to the future, we've got a couple of other things that we think will continue to help us grow margins,” he said. “The first would be we're in our second year of our One Touch remodel program, where we'll touch about 80% of our sites in the United States and Canada, and we are seeing nice food growth on the back of those remodels.”
He provided no details as to what will be involved in this remodeling or what it would involve at the store level.
In October of 2023, Couche-Tard announced its 10 for the Win five-year strategic plan outlining its growth plans for the next five years through both organic and inorganic initiatives.
“It is with great pride that we announced our new 10 for the Win strategy today. The entire executive team and I believe that we have put together a compelling and achievable path to reach our ambitious goals. We are excited to start executing on 10 for the Win to bring more value to our customers, team members, and shareholders as we strive to become the most trusted brand in convenience and mobility,” said Hannasch at the time.
Earlier, Couche-Tard had embarked on “One Touch” program reduce energy usage across the company’s business units in North America with upgrades to lighting, refrigeration systems and coolers used at its various locations.
In its Sustainability Report 2020 the company reported that “through this program, we conduct audits to identify stores most in need of energy upgrades. Last year, energy upgrades included LED internal and external lighting replacements, refrigerator system upgrades, motion sensor and timer installations in backrooms, restrooms and walk-in coolers. As a result of the “One-Touch” program, we sustained a 3.2% year-on-year average electricity reduction and a 7.7% year-on-year average water consumption reduction since its inception in FY14.”
