A First: Big Y Express Fuel and Convenience Opens in Lee, Massachusetts

Big Y Express Fuel and Convenience opened at 320 Housatonic St. in Lee, Mass., on Rt. 20 off exit 2 of the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Big Y Express represents a new venture and a partnership between two long-established Western Massachusetts family-owned and operated businesses, Big Y Foods, Inc. and F.L. Roberts & Co. The companies announced Dec. 16 that the store had opened during the preceding week. This is their first Big Y Express Fuel and Convenience location. Big Y Express is open 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week. It is also just several hundred feet away from Big Y’s World Class Market in Lee.

The inaugural 2,000-square-foot location features the traditional F.L. Roberts product mix along with many Big Y proprietary private brand products including grocery, snacks and freshly made ready to eat offerings such as sandwiches, hot dogs, fountain soda, freshly brewed coffee, pastries, and fresh fruit.

In addition, F.L. Roberts Rewards-PLUS loyalty cards along with Big Y Silver Savings Club cards can be used for more discounts at the pump and on items inside the store. Big Y’s Express Rewards silver and gold coins can be redeemed for cents off per gallon at the pump. There are 8 pump positions with regular, unleaded, premium and diesel fuels supplied by F.L.Roberts who is the operating partner and responsible for the 10 Big Y Express employees.

Many supermarket chains throughout the country own and operate gas and convenience stores in addition to supermarket formats. Coborns in Minnesota, Giant Eagle in Pittsburgh, Pa., and KVAT in Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee operate both formats.

With their alliance with F.L. Roberts, Big Y combines the expertise of the largest independent petroleum marketer in Western Massachusetts with the largest independently owned and operated supermarket chain in New England. According to Big Y president and COO, Charles L. D’Amour, “We get the best of both worlds with our Big Y Express partnership. On the one hand, we are learning about gas stations and convenience stores. On the other, we are providing our expertise in food coupled with our strong private brand to enhance the experience for our customers. ”

Steve Roberts, F.L. Roberts’s president echoes the same enthusiasm for this partnership. “Two well established companies have combined their expertise to help each other grow to better service our customers and communities.”

Headquartered in Springfield, Mass., Big Y is one of the largest independently owned supermarket chains in New England, operating 61 locations throughout Connecticut and Massachusetts with over 10,000 employees. Founded in 1936 by brothers Paul and Gerald D’Amour, the store was named after an intersection in Chicopee, Mass., where two roads converge to form a “Y”. Currently, both the second and third generation of D’Amours are at the helm of the company.

F.L. Roberts, a 4^th-generation family-owned business, was founded in 1920 by Frank L. Roberts as an automotive parts and tire business in the south end of Springfield. Today, the company has expanded to include other automotive specialties at nearly 60 sites with 500 employees serving both motorists and neighborhoods in Massachusetts and Connecticut. A network of automotive service companies includes 26 convenience stores, 20 car washes, 9 jiffy lubes, 2 truck fueling centers and the Whately Diner. Currently both third and fourth generation Roberts manage the business.