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Savannah-based Enmark stations are getting a new look, one that executives say better reflects the its commitment to fresh foods, health and other innovations shaping the convenience store industry.
With a mission to “enrich lives in the communities we serve,” Enmark will now be doing business as “enmarket.”
“Enmark has always been recognized as the market leader in competitively priced premium quality, double-filtered fuel, and none of that will change,” said Houstoun Demere, vice president of enmarket.
“But with the simple addition of two letters, we’ve included the word ‘market’ within our name, and that is more indicative of the type of stores we operate.”
The change in branding — which will be implemented throughout the company’s 63 stores in Georgia and the Carolinas within the next year — was inspired by the evolution the company has experienced over time, Demere said.
Founded in 1963 as Interstate Stations and rebranded some 20 years later to Enmark, the family-run convenience store chain looks much different now than it did when the Enmark name appeared in the 1980s, Demere said.
“We’ve maintained the core values that the company was founded upon but have morphed into something different with some significant changes in how we go to market. Most of these changes have occurred inside the walls of Enmark over the last few years, both in the stores and in the office,” he said.
“We felt it was time to make some external modifications to better reflect these internal changes. This starts with our name and logo, the first thing you see when you ride by one of our stores.”
Demere said the new name “was sitting there in front of us the whole time. When we realized it, it didn’t take us long to embrace the idea to make the change. It seemed like a natural progression for our brand.”
Enmarket will continue to offer the same core products Enmark has carried with additional product lines being added to several areas. Eleven of their current stores are preparing fresh food on site.
Also, the company has added a new line of healthy snacks with more all-natural, organic, gluten free, and non-GMO options for customers, Demere said.
“We’ve increased our delivery frequencies for products like fresh salads, sandwiches and produce so that we are able to keep the freshest possible products on our shelves all week long. We’ve also added take-home casseroles from Miss Sophie’s, rotisserie chickens, and other take home meal solutions for the customer on the go.”
The company has also changed the look associated with the brand.
“We softened up the logo and made some color modifications that better represent the current identity of our company,” said Matt Clements, director of marketing at enmarket, “We also added a couple of leaves to the logo to accentuate the fresh and healthy elements of our brand.”
With the rebranding efforts, enmarket plans to change more than just their name. Many stores will see interior remodels and re-imaging. Employees will receive new uniforms reflecting the transformation. In-store technologies will be upgraded for quicker transactions as well.
Continued growth is planned by way of both acquisitions and new builds, Demere said.
Enmarket will continue to sponsor events such as the Savannah Bridge Run and the Encourage Health lunch series to promote healthy lifestyles and to further increase health and wellness awareness in the community, he said. The company also has added bicycle service stations at two locations with heavy bike traffic, with more stores to be added in the future.
The company’s move is part of a larger national trend, said Jeff Lenard, vice president of strategic industry initiatives for the National Association of Convenience Stores.
“There is definitely a trend in the industry to increase focus on a market offer that involves more grab-and-go and fresh items,” he said.
“From the consumer standpoint, several things are happening. People, especially millennials, are snacking more and this snacking is replacing meal occasions,” Lenard said. “On-the-go customers increasingly are looking for fresh and healthy grab-and-go items.
“At the same time, consumers are looking at their grocery shopping differently,” he said. “There are more trips, both to larger format stores like Target and Walmart as well as to smaller format stores, such as Trader Joe’s.”
Retailers see opportunity in the market format as traditional core items like gas and tobacco face challenges, Lenard said.
“For convenience stores, fresh market foods can be a big point of differentiation, Lenard said.
“Clearly enmarket gets that,” he said. “The new name is very clever in that it keeps the familiar Enmark branding while adding the market concept.”