Buc-ee's expansion in conservative states was on display on Aug. 17, when the chain opened its 58th location in Benton, Arkansas. Arch Aplin III used the grand opening to say the company is leaning toward states that share that profile, even as Buc-ee's keeps adding stores across several regions.
“We have a lot of opportunities. We're growing. We're building in a lot of places, but when you find a conservative, business-friendly state with a phenomenal workforce, it makes a difference,” Aplin said in a video shared by Sarah Huckabee Sanders. He added that “life's too short to try to build in places that people don't appreciate what you're bringing versus a place like this, where people do appreciate what you're building.”
Benton, Arkansas grand opening
Aplin, Buc-ee's co-founder, president and CEO, spoke at the Aug. 17 grand opening ceremony in Benton, Arkansas. He also said that “So that leadership, that concept, that idea of conservative, business-friendly, family-oriented concept works so much better if it trickles down from the very leadership.”
He continued, “From the very top at the governor's office, at the congressman, at the senator, at the mayor (and) the representatives.” The remarks tied the Benton opening to a broader site-selection approach that puts local and state leadership in the company’s calculation.
Ohio and Arizona openings
Buc-ee's has already opened its first locations in Ohio and Arizona this year, and it opened its first location in Virginia in 2025. The company debuted in Colorado a year earlier, showing how quickly it has moved into new markets while still describing a preference for certain kinds of states.
The next additions already on the calendar are in Louisiana, Kansas and Wisconsin, where Buc-ee's anticipates opening inaugural locations by the end of 2027. Crissy Gonzales said the Murfreesboro, Tennessee, location will open on Nov. 16.
Future state choices
Buc-ee's was founded in 1982, and the Benton opening adds another step in a national rollout that has also drawn attention because of lawsuits tied to the company’s trademarks. The company sued Beaver's Mini Mart in Beavercreek, Ohio, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Buc-ee's should drop that lawsuit.
John Oliver discussed those lawsuits on the July 26 episode of Last Week Tonight, putting additional attention on how Buc-ee's handles expansion and branding. For now, the company is growing fast, but Aplin's remarks make its next choices clearer: it wants locations where state leaders and local markets welcome the chain's presence.
