Buc-ee’s CEO Arch Aplin III says the popular travel center chain will increasingly look toward “conservative, business-friendly” states as it expands, as the company faces criticism over its efforts to protect its trademarks from small businesses.
“We have a lot of opportunities. We’re growing. We’re building in a lot of places, but when you find a conservative, business-friendly state with a phenomenal workforce, it makes a difference,” Aplin said in a video clip posted by Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
“And I’m starting to realize life’s too short to try to build in places that people don’t appreciate what you’re bringing versus a place like this, where people do appreciate what you’re building,” Aplin continued.
The Texas-based chain has expanded well beyond its home state in recent years, developing locations across the South and moving into other parts of the country.
Buc-ee’s currently operates locations in Texas, Arizona, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, as well as Colorado, Missouri, Virginia and Ohio.
The company has built a following for its massive travel centers, which feature dozens of fuel pumps, expansive convenience stores, branded merchandise and food selections. Buc-ee’s has also heavily promoted its reputation for clean restrooms.
But the chain’s growth has been accompanied by legal disputes over its recognizable beaver logo and other branding.
In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine has criticized Buc-ee’s for suing the operator of Beaver’s Mini Mart in Beavercreek over alleged trademark infringement. DeWine called the lawsuit “ridiculous.”
The dispute comes as Buc-ee’s moves forward with a location in Huber Heights, about 16 miles from Beaver’s Mini Mart.
The lawsuit has also drawn criticism from some Beavercreek residents.
“To see this, that they’re coming after a small business like this, it upset me like it did a lot of Beavercreek residents,” resident Sam Bryan told Nexstar’s WDTN.
The Ohio case is not the first time Buc-ee’s has taken legal action over intellectual property concerns. Last year, the company sued a Florida store and a South Carolina apparel company over alleged infringement.
