RICHMOND, VA – January 8, 2007 – Matrix Capital Markets Group, Inc. announced today the successful closing on substantially all of the assets of Southern Convenience Stores, Inc., a North Carolina based owner and operator of retail petroleum marketing outlets and convenience stores throughout North and South Carolina.
In July of 2006, Matrix began marketing the Company’s 68 company operated stores through a structured sale process. The stores sold a total of approximately 40 million gallons of motor fuels in 2005 and averaged approximately $600,000 of merchandise sales per store. Forty-one of the stores were offered with real estate, with the remaining 27 subject to leases.
Matrix’s competitive sale process resulted in eight of the stores being acquired by family members of Babubhai Patel and six of the stores were purchased by McCray’s Country Cupboard. Another 47 stores were acquired by various other buyers.
Mike Frost, President of Southern Convenience Stores, Inc., commented on the sale process, “Considering the complexity of Southern’s operating geographies, Matrix was able to access a broad spectrum of potential buyers from across the country. I found that Matrix’s proprietary buyer network was extremely important in this process. Their experience in designing marketing processes that maximize value in selling companies, along with their ability to network new and previously known potential buyers made for a very successful transaction.”
Tom Kelso, Managing Director and head of the Energy and Multi-Site Retail Group at Matrix managed the transaction and added, “We are honored to have been selected to manage this sale and have enjoyed working with Mike Frost and Hampton Hager as they exit the retail petroleum business. The outcome we achieved was the result of a well designed and executed process that created competition for the assets amongst various types of potential buyers.”