Suwanee QT to have smoothies, fresh food, baristas

By Keith Farner (778)
keith.farner@gwinnettdailypost.com

As of Friday, April 13, 2012
© Copyright 2013 Gwinnett Daily Post

SUWANEE -- Baristas are coming to a gas station near you.

QuikTrip, which has operated in Atlanta for 25 years, is expected to complete construction and open a Suwanee location that features "a Generation 3 store." QT Spokesman Mike Thornbrugh said he expects the store will open Thursday.

The QuikTrip Corporation bought 3.96 acres from Kathleen and Eugene Walls in August 2010, and will open a gas station and convenience store at the 3359 Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road address, at the intersection with Satellite Boulevard.

The Walls have said that they have no hard feelings toward QT, and feel fortunate that given the economic downturn, the company was looking to buy.

Thornbrugh said the 5,700-square-foot facility will be noticeably bigger than older stores, and will have two front entryways and two side doors, to disperse foot traffic inside the store. It will be "completely different from the outside and inside," Thornbrugh said. It's about 1,100 square feet more than the older stores.

The Generation 3 store will have employees, some call "baristas," who prepare hot and cold drinks, smoothies and fresh food. It's a departure from the self-service model QT has used previously.

"If we don't get you with the 'wow' factor, we haven't done our job," Thornbrugh said.

QT will look to expand on its "grab-and-go" section, as Thornbrugh said customers want something they can eat in their car, or take to work or home. That section includes pastas, lasagna and pizzas.

The company has recently opened Generation 3 stores in Charlotte, N.C., and Anderson, S.C. The concept was tested in Tulsa, Okla., about three years ago.

"We're not big on store counts, we're big on population," Thornbrugh said. "We're chasing population."

QuikTrip has about 600 stores in 10 states.

More like this story

FARNER: Suwanee residents benefit from gas price competition ( June 30, 2012 )
QuikTrip coming to Suwanee Gateway ( November 30, 2010 )
Suwanee couple fondly remembers home before QuikTrip ( March 17, 2012 )
Falling gas prices dip below $3 ( June 30, 2012 )
Finding fuel<br/> QuikTrip aiming to have gasoline at all locations today ( October 1, 2008 )

kevin 1 year, 1 month ago

This decision for another gas station on Satelite and LVille-Suwanee is a very bad choice of business for that spot. Just watch all the problems at that spot.

Award88 1 year, 1 month ago

QuikTrip typically will spend over $1 million in researching a piece of property before deciding to put a store there, to make sure it will be a profitable location. If you notice they purchased the land in 2010, yet they are just now getting around to the store opening. At least one year of that time was spent doing the research phase.

kevin 1 year, 1 month ago

If I were investing money, I would do the research BEFORE spending my money, not after.

VicMorrow 1 year, 1 month ago

Good idea, bad location.

RamProud 1 year, 1 month ago

Why would the family have any hard feelings toward QuickTrip?

kevin 1 year, 1 month ago

The family needed money and the highest bidder won out. Money always talks the loudest.

ssilover1 1 year ago

I agree with your question, RamProud. I thought that was an odd and disjointed comment in the piece. And, good for the Walls. Good for QT.

Award88 1 year, 1 month ago

These stores are amazing. They already have 2 opened in the Atlanta market, one in morrow and one that just opened Thursday at Buford Hwy and 285.

suedehead 1 year, 1 month ago

QT is the only C-store I will patronize other than the Racetrac near my home. I drive a good deal and know where just about every one is in the Atlanta area. They're clean, well-lit, have lots of healthy food choices and a lack of head shop junk near the registers. The employees seem a step above most other of their kind. They are treated well and paid decently. The Chik-fil-A of C-stores, if you will. I passed the one at Buford Hwy and 285 two weeks ago prior to opening and it's huge!

ACC12_SEC13Booster 1 year, 1 month ago

Same sentiments here as completely agree with everything you said.

At one time, I too had a job that required an EXTREME amount of driving and have driven past every OuikTrip and RaceTrac convenience store location in North Georgia.

OuikTrips are also a great place to pull off the road and take a breather as I have had to do so many times during some work weeks that sometimes went as long as 130 hours (there's only 168 hours total in a week), which is what I mean when I say an EXTREME amount of driving.

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