Passions run high in Oklahoma when it comes to filling up your tank, stopping for a coffee or locating the perfect taquito, and while convenience store chains are abundant here, for many customers there is only one answer.
Naturally, that answer varies from person to person and chain to chain. Some prefer the coffee at OnCue. Others, thepizza from Casey's. And some always search outthe ambiance and amenitiesof a QuikTrip.
Regardless, Okies from across the state are certain that their preferred location is supreme to all the other stop-and-go options along the state's highways, interchanges and city streets.
Preferences vary based on food, gas prices, parking
But what really sets theseplaces apart?
"The doughnuts in comparison toQuikTripare like subpar here in Oklahoma City," said Johnny Jones, a Tulsa native living in Edmond. "QuikTrip is like gourmet, perfectly chocolated, perfectly mapleized doughnuts that are made fresh like every single day."
For Jones, it was a feeling of elation to hear the news that the Tulsa-based convenience store chain plans to open a location in Oklahoma City.That meanshis visits to QuikTrip will no longer have to be planned out during trips back to Tulsa to visit his parents.
More:City filing shows QuikTrip planned for I-35 and Hefner Road
"I schedule time, a five- to 10-minute buffer, so Ican make sure Iget a QuikTripsandwich, bacon, egg and cheese croissant, on the way there and back. Always. Two maple bars, because it's lit. I gotta have it," Jones said."On Christmas no one made breakfast, we went to QuikTrip."
Food is of great consideration for many when deciding which exit to take off the highway for a pit stop. However, many other factors abound for drivers and passengers alike.
James Quintero is typically a patron of an OnCue in his hometown of Moorebecause the prices are competitive and the facilities are clean.
“Usually the gas is a little cheaper, but I’m seeing $2.77 everywhere right now,” Quintero said while filling up at an OnCue location in south Oklahoma City.
His preference may change in the near future though, withQuikTrip's announcement of plans to build a locationin Moore, which is planned to begin construction about 2023 or after.
More:QuikTrip to build a travel center in Moore
“It’ll give the OnCue and the Love’s a run for its money,”Quintero said. “It’s always about the cleanliness for me, and from what I’ve seen in Tulsa, QuikTrip is always clean.”
Moreover, parking availability and large facilities to accommodate heavier traffic also make for an easier all-around experience for some customers.
"I just started drivingnot that long ago, so it's nice to have a lot of space to park and get my gas,"saidKatherine HeDaire, an OnCue enthusiast in Oklahoma City. "I feel like since it's bigger, it's easier to not have people talk to me. Alot of people talk to me at Casey's, and I am super awkward and don't like it, but they're very friendly.And on top of that, OnCuecarriesmy favorite chips, hot limeflavored Doritos."
Choices abound amid market changes in local convenience stores
Another factor influencing theconvenience store debate is that many Oklahomans may not have paid a visit to all of the different available chainoptions.
Additionally, recent changes in the quick-stop market, especially in Oklahoma City, may change the perspective of some.
For example, Circle K sold its 49 metro-area locations to Casey's General Stores last July, giving a new player an opportunity to make an impression with customers that previously would not have been able to try the chain's pizzas and hot foods.
More:Circle K leaving OKC and selling to new player in local convenience store market
In 2020, over 100 7-Eleven stores in central Oklahoma, which had operated independently from the international 7-Eleven Inc. for over six decades, were sold to the conglomerate that owns over 70,000 stores worldwide.
As a result of that sale, directly or indirectly, an opportunity for QuikTrip to move into the metro area presented itself.
Over the years the reason for QuikTrip's absence from the city has been attributed to a saturated convenience storemarket. But also,some believe there wasa longstanding agreement between former Oklahoma City 7-Eleven owner Bill Brown and QuikTrip co-founder ChesterCadieux.
While there is no evidence of an official agreement, or that of a "gentlemen's agreement," in 2019 former QuikTrip spokesmanMike Thornbrugh chalked up the decision to stay away from Oklahoma City as "old school respect."
In a 2014 story in the Tulsa World,Cadieux saidBrown gave him business advice and helped him during the early stages of QuikTrip's existence.
“If it wasn't for Brown, we wouldn't be in business,” Cadieux said. “As long as Brown's family owns those stores, it would be unconscionable to open there.”
Butsince then time has passed, andthe convenience store market hasshifted. However,one thing remains important to customers regardless of brand name,convenience.
What's next in the OKC convenience store wars?
For Cody Hall, fancy amenities and the range ofoptions provided by large conveniencestores is justfluff.
“It’s all about ease of access, being able to pull into the pump and get back out easily,” said Hall while filling up at the 7-Eleven onthe corner of SW 44 and Blackwelder in Oklahoma City.“It’s also always nice to have an easy way to pull up to put air in your tires.”
Amid all of the options and changes to the conveniencestore scene, something elseis certain to stick around—the unending debate of c-store supremacy.
For some, like Katherine HeDaire, that means returning to a familiar location again and again.
"Oh my gosh, I just realized I love OnCue so much.They have a drive-thru. Everything about OnCue is the modern woman's dream going to a gas station, like everything I need."
Or, for Johnny Jones, anxiously awaiting the arrival of a familiar place like QuikTrip.
"Literally might cry, I'm over the top excited. I can't wait to get my first bacon, egg and cheese croissant from QuikTrip when they get down here, like I'm going to drive over there no matter what."
The passion Oklahomans feel for the convenience store routine is not fading away and remains unwavering through mergers, acquisitions, gas prices and recipe changes.
Buc-ees anyone?
