Casey's
| File:Casey's logo.svg Logo used since 2020 | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Convenience stores, Quick-service restaurants |
| Founded | January 1, 1959 in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. |
| Founder | Donald Lamberti |
| Headquarters | Ankeny, Iowa , United States |
Area served | Midwestern and Southern United States (20 states as of 2025) |
| Products | Convenience retail, made-to-order pizza, coffee, sandwiches, fuel sales |
| Website | caseys |
Casey's Retail Company, commonly known as Casey's, is a convenience store network serving the Midwestern and Southern regions of the United States. Its corporate headquarters are located in Ankeny, Iowa, a suburb of Des Moines. As of October 1, 2023, Casey's operates approximately 2,500 outlets throughout 16 states. After 7-Eleven's acquisition of Speedway, Casey's became the third-largest convenience store chain in the U.S., trailing only 7-Eleven and Circle K/Couche-Tard, and stands as the largest chain fully owned by Americans. Additionally, it is one of just two Fortune 500 companies based in Iowa.
Specializing in made-to-order pizza—including varieties such as breakfast and taco pizzas—Casey's ranks as the fifth largest pizza chain nationwide. Its business strategy integrates convenience retailing with quick-service food options like pizza, coffee, sandwiches, alongside fuel sales, enabling significant market presence and consistent growth.
History
The origins of Casey's trace back to 1959 when Donald Lamberti leased a gas station in Des Moines from his father. After transforming it into a convenience store and managing it successfully for nine years, his fuel supplier Kurvin C. (K.C.) Fish encouraged him to acquire the Square Deal Oil Company station located in Boone, Iowa. Acting on this advice, Lamberti purchased the Boone site, rebranded it "Casey's" in honor of Fish, and converted it into a convenience outlet. The logo from this Boone store served as the company’s emblem until 2020.
The Boone location’s strong performance motivated Lamberti to open another store in Creston, Iowa, which also thrived. Subsequently, he launched a new store built from the ground up in Waukee, Iowa, which became even more successful. This experience led him to concentrate expansion efforts on communities with populations below 5,000 residents.
1970s–1990s
By the close of the 1970s, Casey's had grown to 118 stores and inaugurated its first warehouse facility. The original family-run store was incorporated into the chain in 1977.
In 1982, the company established its initial Distribution Center in Urbandale, Iowa.
Casey's went public in October 1983 by offering 700,000 shares during its IPO. Around this period, the product range was expanded to include doughnuts and pizza; a brief trial with fried chicken was also conducted but later discontinued.
The company moved its headquarters to Ankeny, Iowa in 1990.
By 1996, Casey's celebrated opening its 1,000th store in Altoona, Iowa and surpassed $1 billion in yearly revenue. Founder Donald Lamberti resigned as CEO in 1998 to assume the role of chairman before retiring completely in 2002.
2000s–2020s
In January 2006, Casey's acquired Gas 'N Shop based in Lincoln, Nebraska. Later that year on August 7th, Casey's expanded further by purchasing HandiMart’s 33-store chain from Cedar Rapids, Iowa for $63 million.
In March 2010, Alimentation Couche-Tard—the operator behind Circle K and other convenience brands—made a $1.9 billion bid for control of Casey's and initiated a proxy contest. Casey's declined this proposal and successfully maintained its board majority by September 2010. Simultaneously, 7-Eleven submitted an offer valued at $2 billion; however, merger talks concluded without agreement by November that year.
April 2016 saw Casey's enhance its logistics network with a second distribution center opening in Terre Haute, Indiana. The following year brought plans to introduce roughly ten new stores across western Ohio and continued growth with a new location opening in Huber Heights, Ohio during 2018.
Responding to investor demands for modernization efforts, Casey's rolled out multiple digital solutions in 2018 including a Fleet Card program, mobile application, and customer loyalty scheme. The CEO anticipated these initiatives would be fully implemented by the first quarter of 2020.
2020–present
In October 2020, Casey's unveiled a refreshed brand identity, introducing a new logo and removing "General Stores" from its storefronts, although the official company name remained unchanged until 2022.
The following month, Casey's expanded its portfolio by acquiring Bucky's Convenience Stores, a Nebraska-based chain with 94 locations, for $580 million. By May 2021, the deal with Buchanan Energy was finalized, incorporating Bucky's outlets into Casey's network. To comply with regulatory mandates, six stores were divested as part of the approval process.
September 2021 brought further growth when Casey's purchased 38 Pilot Food Mart sites along with two truck stops located in East Tennessee from the Haslam family, strengthening its presence in the Knoxville market.
In August 2023, Casey's continued its expansion by acquiring 63 Minit Mart and Certified Oil stores across Kentucky and Middle Tennessee, converting these to Casey's branded locations by October. Then in November 2023, the company made its entry into Texas by acquiring 22 convenience stores primarily situated in North Texas.
A significant milestone occurred in July 2024 with the $1.145 billion cash purchase of Fikes Wholesale, Inc., which included nearly 200 CEFCO convenience stores. This acquisition extended Casey's reach deeper into Texas and marked its introduction into Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi.
In October 2024, Casey's secured the naming rights for Des Moines' Wells Fargo Arena, which will be renamed Casey's Center starting July 1, 2025.
Operations
By January 2025, Casey's operated more than 2,600 locations spanning 20 states: