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FRANCHISE RESALES

Buy an ampm Convenience Stores Franchise

ampm is a convenience store brand launched in 1978 in Southern California, where its stores sit alongside ARCO fuel stations. The format pairs round-the-clock fuel traffic with quick-serve food, beverages, snacks and everyday essentials, and is known for value-led items and proprietary drinks. Decades of West Coast trading have made it one of the region’s most recognisable c-store names.

On the West Coast, ARCO and ampm are owned by Marathon Petroleum Corporation, which offers the franchise through its affiliate Treasure Franchise Company. BP, the brand’s former owner, still operates ampm stores in parts of Northern California and the Pacific Northwest and has opened company-run locations elsewhere; the opportunity here is the Marathon ARCO ampm programme.

The model is a brick-and-mortar, territory-based fuel-and-convenience business, usually run by hands-on owner-operators, many holding multiple sites. Franchisees either rebrand an existing station to ARCO ampm or build a new one, backed by TOP TIER gasoline, an established loyalty app and national brand marketing. With 900-plus US locations concentrated on the West Coast, ampm pairs strong consumer familiarity with the steady footfall of co-located fuel retail.

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Why buy an ampm Convenience Stores Franchise?

Buying an ampm franchise gives a new owner a brand West Coast drivers have known for more than four decades, paired with ARCO’s TOP TIER fuel and the steady traffic that round-the-clock fuel retail brings. Convenience retail has proved resilient across economic cycles, and ampm’s value positioning tends to hold up well when shoppers trade down.

The combined fuel-and-store format spreads revenue across two complementary streams, while franchisees draw on national advertising, category management, a loyalty app and Marathon’s supplier and merchandising support rather than building all of that alone. Financial incentives for qualified franchisees and a Vet-Fran programme for US military veterans add further backing.

ampm Convenience Stores Franchise Costs & Information

  • Minimum Qualifications

    • Initial Franchise Fee

      $40,000 - $70,000

    • Initial Investment

      $440,291 - $10,405,152

  • Royalty

    • Royalty Fee

      11-14%

  • Training & Support

    • Up to 120 hours on the job training

    • Up to 20 hours classroom training

    • Ongoing support

    • Marketing support

ampm Convenience Stores – Additional  Information

  1. Training & Support

    Incoming franchisees receive up to 120 hours of on-the-job training and up to 20 hours of classroom training covering store operations, administration and finances. Ongoing backing includes field support, merchandising and category management, proprietary operating software, national and television advertising, the ampm loyalty app, and franchisee conventions. Buyers of an existing ARCO ampm unit should confirm what transfer training and system access the franchisor provides to incoming owners and any retained staff.

  2. Ideal Owner

    ampm suits hands-on operators comfortable running a high-volume, 24/7 retail site where fuel and convenience sales are managed together. Strong people management matters, as stores rely on shift teams, and the model rewards owners who are disciplined with inventory, merchandising and customer service. Retail or fuel experience helps but is not required, since training is provided. Many franchisees grow into multi-site ownership, so candidates who think like multi-unit operators and can delegate day-to-day tasks tend to fit well.

  3. Recognition & Awards

    ampm's strongest credibility signal is longevity: more than 60 years as a West Coast fuel-and-convenience icon, with high consumer recognition built on value pricing, proprietary drinks and a widely used loyalty app. Its pairing with ARCO TOP TIER gasoline reinforces trust at the pump. The franchise programme has recognised leading operators through Franchisee of the Year honours, and the brand has appeared in Entrepreneur franchise rankings. For resale buyers, brand-level recognition should be weighed alongside the specific site's local reputation, reviews and visibility.

  4. Industry / Market

    The US convenience-store sector is large and durable: NACS reported foodservice and merchandise sales of $341.2 billion in 2025, up 1.7% on 2024, across roughly 152,000 stores. Foodservice is the leading in-store category at about 28.5% of inside sales, and the industry has posted more than two decades of record inside sales. For ampm, co-location with fuel drives steady daily footfall, while value-led food and drink can gain share when budgets tighten. Resale buyers should weigh these tailwinds against very local factors such as traffic counts and nearby competition.

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