Winning the trip isn’t about being the closest stop anymore. For years, fuel and convenience alone were often enough to earn the stop, but today’s customers expect more. They’re looking for quality food, broader merchandise, inviting stores and an experience worth making the stop for.
According to a 2025 NACS consumer survey, more than 82% of surveyed American adults said they would drive five minutes out of their way to visit a gas station they like more. That means your biggest competitor isn’t always the nearest store. It’s the one that customers decide is worth the extra drive.
“For retailers, the challenge isn’t simply keeping up with changing expectations. It’s determining which investments actually create a store customers choose over the competition,” said Gary Braaten, director of retail development at Cenex®.
Looking across five years of retailer investment performance, Cenex found a clear trend: while remodels can improve a store, the strongest long-term business results consistently came from raze and rebuild projects.
Two retailers put that finding to the test.
Stop Remodeling, Start Rebuilding
For Missouri-based Eagle Stop, the decision to start over wasn’t about replacing aging stores. It was about creating locations designed for the way customers shop today.
The company’s most recent project in Camdenton, Missouri, shows why. Located near the Lake of the Ozarks, the site serves both local residents and a steady stream of weekend visitors. But the previous store was not designed to fully capture those visits. Limited space constrained merchandise, restricted offerings and made it harder for the business to keep pace with customer expectations.
Eagle Stop knew the opportunity was there. The remaining question was how to move forward with the right investment.
That’s where the Cenex LIFT program came in. By combining low-interest financing, principal balance contributions and preferred vendor discounts, LIFT gave Eagle Stop the flexibility to pursue a raze and rebuild rather than continue investing around the limitations of the existing store.
“Too often, retailers know exactly what their business needs, but cost forces them to think smaller,” said Braaten. “LIFT gives them the flexibility to evaluate the opportunity based on long-term potential, not just upfront cost.”
Since 2020, Cenex has paid nearly $11 million in interest on behalf of retailers, helping operators pursue larger, higher-impact investments while preserving capital for other business priorities.
For Eagle Stop, that meant moving forward with a raze and rebuild that expanded the store’s footprint by 2,500 square feet, creating room for broader merchandise offerings, expanded food service and the kind of customer experience that simply wasn’t possible within the previous footprint.
The payoff was transformational. According to Vice President Jenna Gier, sales have more than doubled, on average, across Eagle Stop’s rebuilt locations. “It’s a win for everyone from the numbers that we’ve seen,” Gier said. “It’s busy all the time.”
For Eagle Stop, the investment was not simply about building a larger store. It was about creating more reasons for customers to stop, more ways to serve them once they arrived, and more room for the business to grow. “Our goal isn’t simply to help retailers build bigger stores,” Braaten said. “It’s to help them build stronger businesses.”
Know When to Go Bigger
Creative Energy faced a similar decision in Jamestown, North Dakota.
The company’s Sooper Stop location was built in 1950 and expanded multiple times over the decades. Leadership knew the store needed investment, but determining the right type of project was less obvious. Rather than making that decision alone, Creative Energy worked alongside its Cenex Retail Business Specialist to evaluate the store’s operational limitations, long-term growth potential and the financial return of several investment options.
“Retail Business Specialists become an extension of the retailer’s team,” Braaten said. “They’re in stores every day, bringing ideas from across the industry and connecting retailers with the right resources. They help retailers step back, evaluate the opportunity and make decisions with confidence.”
For Creative Energy CFO Amber Backen, that relationship became one of the most valuable parts of the process.
“Our Retail Business Specialist does a fantastic job keeping up with trends, looking at what we’re doing inside the store, giving us suggestions and creating relationships with vendors that I probably wouldn’t be able to do as quickly,” Backen said. “He helps me avoid costly mistakes and shortens the learning curve.”
With a clearer understanding of the opportunity, Creative Energy concluded that continuing to invest in the existing building would only delay a larger decision. A raze and rebuild offered the stronger long-term return. LIFT helped make that path more attainable.
“The LIFT program was the key driver in our decision to demo our old store and rebuild the new store,” Backen said. “A buydown in interest makes the decision … much easier because it eliminates interest costs, allowing us to invest in growth without adding significant financing expenses.”
The new location reflects both the community it serves and the future the cooperative envisioned. Local Sooper Stop’s rebuilt location in Jamestown, North Dakota, is filled with artwork, including a mural celebrating the community’s history. artwork is featured throughout the store, including a mural celebrating downtown Jamestown and the community’s iconic buffalo monument. Expanded merchandise, improved layout and additional customer amenities created a destination designed to serve the community for years to come.
The investment resonated with customers almost immediately, exceeding its first-year sales goal by more than 50%. For Backen, the project validated something many retailers eventually discover: sometimes the best investment isn’t another remodel. It’s having the confidence to start over.
Opportunities to Grow
Not every store needs a raze and rebuild. But every retailer should understand which investment gives their business the greatest opportunity to grow. That’s where Cenex Retail Business Specialists come in. They help retailers evaluate their sites, compare investment options and determine the right path forward.
Combined with the Cenex LIFT program, retailers have access to financial support that can help turn the right investment into a realistic one. Learn more about the Cenex LIFT program and Retail Business Specialist support at cenex.com/dealer-branding-program.
