London's BP Betting $100 Mil Central Florida Retail Expansion Will Pay Off

ORLANDO-London-based BP, one of the world’s largest oil and gas producers, plans to become the Wal-Mart of the all-day, all-night convenience store business by investing $100 million in new properties in Central Florida over the next two years.

The new stores are called BP Connect, an updated version of the company’s conventional retail outlets. The Central Florida expansion is expected to be the pilot for the company’s growth throughout the Southeast.

The 26 new stores, at an estimated 10,000 sf each, will bring BP’s total Central Florida BP Connect outlets to 40 covering about 400,000 sf. The new locations are still being determined. The first BP Connect stores opened in May 2001.