West Oil Inc. has sold 25 Markette convenience stores and one Lotto Land store in South Carolina to FR Refuel LLC. The transaction also includes two car wash properties and three vacant lots for future development.
FR Refuel is a portfolio company of First Reserve, a global private equity investment firm exclusively focused on energy.
West’s stores are located primarily in northeastern South Carolina. Fourteen of the stores sell Shell-branded motor fuels, and the remaining 12 stores carry the company’s proprietary West Oil fuel brand. The stores offer convenience merchandise and six stores have proprietary deli offerings. As part of the transaction, FR Refuel is acquiring the fee simple interest in 25 of the stores and a leasehold interest in the remaining property.
West Oil traces its roots back to 1964, when Lee West founded the company in Hartsville, South Carolina. In 1973, Lee’s son, Alexander West Sr., joined the company, assisting his father in opening their first retail store in Hartsville that same year. The company had grown to 15 stores when Alexander (Lex) West Jr. joined the family business in 1989. Lex’s partner, Reginald (Bunky) Joyce III, joined the company in 1993, and in 2003, they finalized the buyout of the company from Alexander Sr.
“It was not an easy decision to sell a family run business of 40 years,” said Lex West, president of West Oil Inc. “My grandfather and father built a strong foundation for the growth of the Markette brand. That growth would not have been possible without our outstanding employees and loyal customers. Bunky and I wanted to ensure that the new owners valued the family-oriented culture of Markette and upheld the values of excellence in customer service and commitment to community service.”
In 2009, the West introduced its proprietary fuel brand, West Oil, to diversify its fuel supply sources. In addition to its petroleum marketing operations, the company also owns a propane distribution business, multiple wine and spirits shops, a mini storage business, and owns and develops other real estate.
Independent investment bank Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc. of Richmond, Virginia, advised West Oil on the transaction. Matrix provided merger and acquisition advisory services, which included valuation advisory, marketing the business through a confidential, structured sale process and negotiation of the transaction.
