Buc-ee’s has been on a building tear lately, with nearly a dozen new locations announced or in construction.
(So if you don’t have a Buc-ee’s nearby, you may be in luck soon!)
In fact, Buc-ee’s has gotten so aggressive that it’s even gone so far as to plan for a whopping three new locations in one lucky state.
(For reference, only Texas and Florida currently have three or more Buc-ee’s. So this is a big deal!)
Now, here’s the thing…
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Buc-ee’s of course cannot build everywhere.
There are some states that are just too small.
And too expensive.
And don’t have enough car traffic.
(Buc-ee’s is, after all, a gas station – with amazing food – but still a gas station!)
And more specifically, I’ve noticed a few trends in how Buc-ee’s does its site selection:
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Generally speaking, I’ve noticed that Buc-ee’s tends to pick locations that fit these criteria:
– Between two large cities
– Rural, on cheap land
– Next to a big highway with tons of traffic
– (Optionally) near a tourist attraction (speedway, national park, that sort of thing)
And with that in mind, here are three states I think should get a Buc-ee’s next (these are, of course, states where a Buc-ee’s has not already been announced):
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Indiana’s neighbor Ohio is getting a Buc-ee’s, in Huber Heights (a suburb of Dayton), with plans to open sometime in 2025.
Huber Heights is a strategic choice because its access to I-70 means that the Buc-ee’s could also pick up plenty of traffic traveling east from Indianapolis (or at least Richmond, Indiana).
Nonetheless, Indiana currently doesn’t have an announced Buc-ee’s location. Which is weird, because…
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Culturally, Indiana is a nice mix of southern and Midwestern – kind of the perfect combination for Buc-ee’s, which is even looking as far north as Wisconsin for additional locations.
Indianapolis is a major city, with over 2.1 million people living in the metro area, plus tons of commuters from across the state and even out into Illinois.
It’s a natural “next step” for Buc-ee’s as it expands into the Midwest.
With that in mind, I think there are a couple of locations that would work well for Buc-ee’s:
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As I mentioned earlier, Buc-ee’s likes to build on cheap land in between metro areas. With that in mind, I’d strongly consider:
– I-65 between Louisville and Indianapolis. Right now, Buc-ee’s doesn’t serve northern Kentucky at all, so this could be a great location. My two cents would be one of the small towns dotting I-65 in southern Indiana – maybe Columbus or Seymour.
– I-69 between Indianapolis and Evansville. Same logic applies; Bloomington is a natural stopping point, or maybe Martinsville if you’re looking to get closer to Indianapolis.
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Ok, I know what you’re thinking. “Really? Iowa?”
And sure – Iowa’s not the biggest state out there.
But let me explain.
First off, there are really just two major highways running through the state – I-35 (North-South) and I-80 (East-West), and they cross in Des Moines.
And while Iowa isn’t all that big on its own…
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It’s certainly a crossroads for travelers to many other places.
I-35 runs from Des Moines south to Kansas City and north to Minneapolis.
I-80 goes through Iowa City to Chicago, and west to Omaha and eventually Cheyenne.
And this is already an area Buc-ee’s is gradually starting to try and tap into…
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Buc-ee’s is building its first location in Kansas near Kansas City (just down the road from the speedway), and they expect a whopping 4 million visitors per year, according to publicly-available documents.
4 million visitors a year.
That’s a lot of out-of-town traffic!
So when thinking about places for Buc-ee’s to build, I think it’s fair to say that their Kansas location probably is expecting to capture a good chunk of that Des Moines – Kansas City traffic on I-35.
But Iowa still makes a ton of sense because…
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That leaves three points of the compass that are not well-covered and absolutely could yield a lot of traffic:
– I-80 between Des Moines and Cedar Rapids (I’d probably build in or near Iowa City since it’s close to some tourist attractions too);
– I-80 between Des Moines and Omaha (I’d lean closer to Omaha, so perhaps Council Bluffs, or Dexter if trying to go closer to Des Moines);
– I-35 heading up to Minneapolis (Mason City could be a good location, or Glenville).
Which brings me to our final state…
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This one’s kind of a gimme.
Oklahoma is in a unique position because it’s almost entirely surrounded by states with Buc-ee’s, but it doesn’t have one of its own.
To the south, of course Texas has loads (that’s where Buc-ee’s was founded, after all…).
Missouri has one in Springfield. Kansas is building one near Kansas City.
Colorado has one, with another on the way.
Buc-ee’s just broke ground on its first location in Arkansas.
The only state bordering Oklahoma that doesn’t have a Buc-ee’s built or at least announced is New Mexico.
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For that reason alone, Oklahoma would be a logical next step for Buc-ee’s.
Add to that the fact that the nearest Buc-ee’s to Oklahoma City is a multi-hour drive away…and of course the fact that all highways center on Oklahoma City (just like Des Moines in Iowa)…well, you can see why it’s a logical place.
Now, it’s worth noting that if you head west on I-40 from OKC, eventually (and I mean eventually you’ll run into the Buc-ee’s in Amarillo, Texas.
So my guess is that Buc-ee’s wouldn’t build in that direction.
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My two cents?
Buc-ee’s should build near I-44 between OKC and Tulsa.
There just really aren’t any other reasonably big cities nearby that lack a Buc-ee’s. (Head south and, once you’re past the Chickasaw Nation, you’ll hit DFW – which has plenty of Buc-ee’s coverage.)
If you do it close enough to OKC, you can also cover I-40 east to Little Rock.
Meeker, McLoud, or Chandler all should be close enough in my opinion.
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So there you have it – three states I firmly believe should be next on Buc-ee’s list as they continue to expand across the USA.
And we know for a fact that Buc-ee’s has been sniffing around Oklahoma, so I’m hopeful that Indiana and Iowa will get some love soon too!
In the meantime, when considering Buc-ee’s general strategy, I have a big question for you:
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Where do YOU think Buc-ee’s should build next?
Is it Indiana, Oklahoma, Iowa, or somewhere else?
Let us know in the comments!
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