THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Sunday, December 11, 1994              TAG: 9412090313
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN              PAGE: 10   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY CAROLE O'KEEFFE, CORRESPONDENT 
DATELINE: SUFFOLK                            LENGTH: Short :   48 lines

RACETRAC BUILDING PORTSMOUTH BOULEVARD STORE THE COMPANY HAS 206 STORES IN 14 STATES AND EMPLOYS ABOUT 2,500 PEOPLE.

RACETRAC PETROLEUM Inc. is about to inject more competition into Suffolk's convenience store/gas station market because the Atlanta-based company considers this a growing area.

RaceTrac is investing $1 million to build a store at 1216 Portsmouth Blvd., where Stuckey's used to have a site on the busy highway east of downtown.

RaceTrac, which already has a store in Isle of Wight County south of the James River Bridge, has 206 stores in 14 states - from Virginia to Florida and west to Texas - and employs about 2,500 people.

The new Suffolk location, expected to open in mid-January, will create eight to 10 jobs, Regional Manager David K. Judd said in a recent interview. The Suffolk manager will be Frank Goldy of Virginia Beach, but the other employees will be hired locally, Judd said.

Beside gasoline, they will be selling snacks, cigarettes, beer, wine and lottery tickets in a 2,500-square-foot store much like the one on Route 17 in Isle of Wight, which opened in January 1993.

``We are square and have gas out front, but we don't look like the others. We are classy,'' said area supervisor Brad Johnson. ``We are big and bright and have a large snack area with fountains, coffee, hot dogs and popcorn.''

Suffolk was chosen for this latest store because it is considered to be a growing area, Judd said. High traffic counts led the company to narrow down the site to Portsmouth Boulevard with its combined Routes 460/58/13 east of downtown, he added.

RaceTrac expects to do well in Suffolk even though Sentry Food Marts and Southern Food Stores are already well established here, Judd said, because, ``We believe in a low-markup, high-volume pricing philosophy.

``We will not be undersold on gas, beer and cigarettes.''

If this new store does well, Judd said, other stores could be built in the Suffolk market. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER

Construction foreman John Laddin and his crew hope to have the new

million-dollar RaceTrac convenience store/gas station at 1216

Portsmouth Blvd. open by mid-January.

by CNB