Like any true phenomenon, it's safe to say Buc-ee's – the part-country store, part-gas station chain founded in Texas – inspires equal levels of confusion and obsession.
A quick Google search produces as many questions as it does answers. What makes Buc-ee's so famous? Why is it so popular? What is Buc-ee's known for? These are just a few of the many trending inquiries surrounding the chain.
Social media may tell you everything you need to know. Reddit users have described it as: "The #1 place to go #2." "What is great and terrible about America in one place." "The gift shop to a theme park without the theme park."
And that's where the store's fame has ballooned. Its virality has led to it being tagged in TikTok videos over 84 million times. On Instagram, Buc-ee's has wracked up over 380,000 followers.
With that fandom has come branding that rivals the likes of Disneyland: specialty lines of Bucky the Beaver nuggets (aka corn puffs), pastries, Texas-made jerky, pickled vegetables, nuts, hot sauce, saltines and more. There are Buc-ee's tumbler cups, stuffed animals, electronics, hats, T-shirts, pajama pants, hoodies and swimsuits.
Should we go on?
Whichever way you became engrossed into the store's multiverse, an official Buc-ee's breakdown is long overdue. Here's what to know about the American chain, why everyone online can't stop talking about it and when it's coming to Ohio.
What's the deal with Buc-ee's?
Before we get into its history, let's first discuss why people are obsessed.
Industry leaders 7-Eleven, Speedway and Circle K each have thousands of locations across the country. Buc-ee's has approximately 50 locations. So why does the Texas chain receive so much hype?
1. Small-town charm available for everyone
The process of franchising small-town charm sounds like an oxymoron. But Buc-ee's has achieved just that through its food and good service, giving everyone a taste of the chain's roots from the comfort of their own major highway.
Continued growth, though, could sacrifice that quaintness, as Greg Lindenberg – an editor for the convenience store trade publication CSP Daily News – warned in 2019.
“Buc-ee’s kind of has that cachet of being a rare place, so if they expand too big, too quickly, they could lose some of that charm,” Lindenberg told Texas Monthly at the time.
2. Really. Good. Food.
What other gas station has its own culinary director?
Buc-ee's has squashed the crappy gas station food stereotype with its Texas Round-Up BBQ counter serving brisket, sliced sausage, turkey and fresh-to-order sandwiches.
The breakfast menu alone includes the Brisket Egg Taco, Hippo Taco, GravyBeast Burrito, Beaver Tail, Rhino Taco and Breakfast Biscuits.
There are also 13 varieties of fresh jerky, 15 kinds of cherry sours and over 20 flavors of fudge. You get the point.
3. It might actually be the No. 1 place to go No. 1 and 2
In 2012, the Buc-ee's in New Braunfels, Texas, was named America’s Best Restroom by Mason, Ohio, based Cintas.With 83 toilets and a cleaning crew that polishes the porcelain around the clock, it's no wonder the location and many others have been praised for sparkly-clean restrooms.
A bit of Buc-ee's history
Arch "Beaver" Aplin III was just 23 years old when he opened his first Buc-ee's in Clute, Texas, a small town outside of Houston. The Texas Business Hall of Famer dreamt up the Bucky the Beaver mascot by combining his childhood nickname with the name of his dog, Buck.
Aplin comes from a family of entrepreneurs. His parents, Arch and Mae Aplin, owned a general store in Louisiana called Arch Aplin’s Biggest Little Store in Catahoula Parish. They sold greens they harvested on their own farm, syrup from their own sugarcane and other specialty products.
Aplin followed in his parent's footsteps, opening the first Buc-ee's in 1982. And he made the store 3,000 square feet instead of the the 2,400 industry average, per Texas Monthly. Over the years, Buc-ee's got bigger and bigger, with locations all around Texas.
In 2003, Aplin opened the 17th Buc-ee's in Luling, Texas, at a scale most consumers associate with the store today. There, Aplin started offering fresh barbecue food and Buc-ee’s-branded merchandise. A new store has since replaced the original Luling location. It's reportedly the world's largest convenience store at 75,593 square feet and has a whopping 120 gas pumps (What's the saying? Everything's bigger in Texas?).
Buc-ee's finally expanded outside of Texas in 2019, debuting a location in Baldwin County, Alabama, which was reported to be the largest travel station in the state at the time, taking up 52,235 square feet. The company has since opened locations inGeorgia,Florida,Kentucky,South Carolina,Tennessee,Colorado andMissouri.
Is there a Buc-ee's in Ohio?
Not yet, but construction is underway.
The state's firstBuc-ee's store hosted a groundbreaking ceremony Aug. 8. The store, located at 8000 State Highway 235 in Huber Heights, a suburb on the north side of Dayton, will have 100 fueling positions, 24 electric vehicle charging stations and occupy 74,000 square feet, according to a statement released by Buc-ee's.
Construction on the location will take around 18 months, putting its completion date near the end of 2025, Huber Heights Mayor Jeff Goretold The Dispatch.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Buc-ee's is so dang popular. But why? Dissecting its rise to fame
