This week I did something I haven’t done in a while—I took a road trip. A work assignment required me, along with my coworker Rachel Gignac, to visit Des Moines, Iowa, and we decided to make the drive from Chicago so we could stop at some convenience stores along the way.
While the drive along I-88/I-80 certainly gets repetitive after more than five hours, the trip was a lot of fun. We made stops at Ankeny, Iowa-based Casey’s; Kwik Star, owned by La Crosse, Wisconsin-based Kwik Trip; Colony Point, based in Williamsburg, Iowa; and Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh, based in West Des Moines, Iowa.
I spend most of my time at work writing and editing stories about convenience stores. It’s nice to actually get out and see them every once in a while. I’m hoping I can do the same in other areas of the country soon.
Here are my highlights from the drive to Des Moines…
Casey’s
Our only planned stop was pizza at Casey’s for lunch. It did not disappoint.
I had a slice of pepperoni, while Rachel had a slice of sausage. It was hot. The crust was not too thick and just crispy enough. It was reasonably priced. All in all, a 10/10 road trip lunch. And we got some peanut butter M&M’s for dessert.
Also striking was the number of private-label snacks (and electronics) that Casey’s offered. I was a big fan of Casey’s Zesty Ranch chips.
Kwik Star
Kwik Star’s hot food and baked goods could not be missed from the moment we walked in the store. It was right during lunch, and there was a steady flow of people coming in and grabbing lunch to go.
The store also was giving out samples of one of its take-home macaroni and cheese meals. I’ve heard of c-stores doing samples before but never saw it myself. What a great idea to introduce customers to its take-home meals. Why not encourage people to pick up something for dinner while they’re stopping in for lunch?
Colony Point
The Colony Point convenience store was our most unique stop on the trip as it featured goods from the nearby Amana Colonies, a National Historic Landmark and one of America’s longest-lived communal societies, according to its website. The store had bp-branded fuel out front.
- bp is No. 7 on CSP’s 2024 Top 202 ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by total number of company-owned stores. Casey's is No. 3, Kwik Trip is No. 11 and Hy-Vee is No. 43.
Inside, in addition to regular c-store goods, there were several shelves of Amana products including Golden Caramel Corn, apple syrup and a variety of sausages and pastas.
Also notable, at this store and others, was the freeze-dried candy selection. I picked up a package of Astro Sandwiches from Andersen’s Crazy Candy.
The store also featured fresh deli sandwiches and gourmet brewed coffee and baked goods.
Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh
I was excited to try a Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh store on our way home. We stopped at the one in Altoona, Iowa, just outside of Des Moines. My first impression of the store was that it was big and clean—not a bad first impression to have.
As expected from a c-store run by a grocery chain, it had a wide assortment of grocery goods like fresh meat, eggs, bacon, yogurts and more. I was particularly impressed with the warm, individually wrapped cookies.
The tidiness of the store was a huge plus—it made me want to buy everything. I left with some boneless chicken wings and honey mustard sauce, chocolate cookie dough bites and to-go people chow.
I’d love to get one of these in Chicago! I could definitely see myself doing grocery shopping here in between bigger trips to the store.
What are your favorite road trip stops? Let me know at hannah.hammond@informa.com.
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