December 1, 2025
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Has Maverik Made a Mistake on its Kum & Go Rebrand?
With Maverik wrapping up its Kum & Go rebrands, as C-Store Dive reporter Brett Dworski detailed, in late November, it does so while facing some degree of scrutiny and criticism from onlookers.
Maverik has now established itself as a major player in both the Midwest and Mountain States convenience store spaces, having purchased ~400 c-stores from Kum & Go across Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
And while the Salt Lake City-based Maverik had seen its leadership allegedly promise to maintain both brands following the 2023 acquisition of Kum & Go, as an earlier report from Dworski outlined in full, that does not seem to have been a kept promise.
“It’s their decision. They can choose what they do… But certainly talking to them, their intent prior to the sale was to maintain both brands,” said former CEO Kyle Krause to the Des Moines Register on the subject of Maverik rebranding all Kum & Go stores, and brand materials, over to its existing framework and aesthetic.
Maverik faces an uphill battle in a variety of ways, per Dworski: First, Kum & Go was a family business for more than half a century, and had created something of a cult-like following among loyal customers – customers that may not have taken well to the aggressive rebrand, nor the axing of around 100 corporate Kum & Go staff in Des Moines.
Second, Maverik’s “adventure-themed” branding may not jive with its Midwest target audience, and that audience may also be expecting things to remain the same – an unlikely prospect given the timeline of events thus far.
It seems that Maverik’s c-suite is well aware of the difficulties that this comprehensive retooling of Kum & Go’s existing cache would create. During remarks made at CSP’s Outlook Leadership event in August, Maverik CEO Crystal Maggelet addressed this concern.
“It was months of going back and forth. We even did market studies to make sure that Maverik would be an accepted name in the communities. We understood that Kum & Go had a brand and loyalty just like Maverik,” Maggelet said at the time.
“From a marketing point of view, from an ease of operation and efficiency, we decided one brand was the way to go,” she added.
Maverik’s Rebranding of Kum & Go: What Does the Future Hold?
A wait-and-see approach seems to be the prevailing take on Maverik’s move thus far, with some degree of skepticism over the near-term future being hinted at by Dworski.
“Maverik has stirred up more controversy than it would probably like in the two years since acquiring Kum & Go. But now that its rebrands are done — and after selling dozens of other Kum & Go stores for undisclosed reasons — the Utah retailer has an opportunity to win over a customer base that, having lost a beloved brand, could be open to falling in love with a new one,” Dworski wrote.
“Earlier this year, a c-store industry expert told C-Store Dive that it’ll be interesting to see how the Midwest reacts to Maverik emerging in the region. Several months and hundreds of rebrands later, the c-store industry is about to find out,” he added.
BrainTrust
Mohamed Amer, PhD
CEO & Strategic Board Advisor, Strategy Doctor
Neil Saunders
Managing Director, GlobalData
Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
In your opinion, was it wise of Maverick’s leadership to fold Kum & Go entirely into its own branding? Why or why not?
Do you believe that Maverik’s branding is strong enough to stand on its own merits in the Midwest?
Poll
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There are two dimensions to this. The first is the rebrand itself. While there are some good reasons for rebranding, many people had affinity for the Kum & Go name – especially regulars in rural areas – and the change may disappoint some. The second, and more important, issue is what happens beyond the name above the door. I have already heard comments from those on the ground that the proposition in rebranded stores is weaker with a less generous loyalty program, lower stock levels, and some shifts in the assortment. That runs the risk of alienating and pushing away core shoppers.
M&A synergy math often breaks down during execution, and cultural integration isn’t an optimization problem; it’s an organizational challenge that, for Kum & Go, extends to the communities it serves. Did Maverik acquire 400 locations or 400 community relationships operating as social infrastructure in rural Midwest communities? The market will ultimately deliver its verdict over the next 18-24 months. The strategic lesson stands regardless: in retail, brand equity is earned trust that compounds over decades and can evaporate in quarters.
This article offers little (beyond a single opinion) in the way of information about how much brand equity Kum & Go enjoyed, so it’s hard to say whether getting rid of it matters much or not. More troubling – to me, anyway – is the comment “Maverik had seen its leadership allegedly promise to maintain both brands”: failing to uphold a promise creates its own problems (as with Watergate “the coverup is worse than the crime”)…tho how much of a promise actually existed seems at issue.
Every brand needs a promise rooted in authenticity for customers to align with it. Time will tell if Maverik was wise to expand its themed brand in the midwest. One of the keys to Maverik’s success is that it engages customers easily having mountains, trails, rivers and lakes within minutes in Utah, Idaho, Nevada.
I believe Maverik’s decision to fold Kum & Go fully into its own branding was a wise move — and based on what I saw firsthand here in Northwest Arkansas, it stands out as one of the best-executed brand transitions I’ve witnessed in retail. The shift didn’t just swap a logo; Maverik managed to preserve the familiarity and convenience that customers associated with Kum & Go while layering in a fresh identity that felt modern, cohesive and relevant. The consistency in store execution, product offering, and atmosphere helped existing customers accept — and new customers embrace — the rebrand without disruption.
Yes — I do believe Maverik’s brand is strong enough to stand on its own merits in the Midwest (and beyond). The success of the transition in a market like Northwest Arkansas demonstrates that a well-positioned, well-managed brand can absorb a regional chain’s history and convert it into a unified, scalable identity. Maverik didn’t just inherit a footprint — it inherited loyalty, but restructured it under a clearly defined brand promise that resonates broadly. The key was the care in execution: everything from signage to product mix to staff training, which made customers feel continuity rather than loss.
From my point of view, this case should serve as a blueprint for other retailers considering consolidation or rebranding. If done with respect to legacy customer relationships, combined with an infusion of new brand energy and disciplined rollout execution — as Maverik did — the outcome can strengthen brand equity rather than erode it.
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There are two dimensions to this. The first is the rebrand itself. While there are some good reasons for rebranding, many people had affinity for the Kum & Go name – especially regulars in rural areas – and the change may disappoint some. The second, and more important, issue is what happens beyond the name above the door. I have already heard comments from those on the ground that the proposition in rebranded stores is weaker with a less generous loyalty program, lower stock levels, and some shifts in the assortment. That runs the risk of alienating and pushing away core shoppers.
M&A synergy math often breaks down during execution, and cultural integration isn’t an optimization problem; it’s an organizational challenge that, for Kum & Go, extends to the communities it serves. Did Maverik acquire 400 locations or 400 community relationships operating as social infrastructure in rural Midwest communities? The market will ultimately deliver its verdict over the next 18-24 months. The strategic lesson stands regardless: in retail, brand equity is earned trust that compounds over decades and can evaporate in quarters.
This article offers little (beyond a single opinion) in the way of information about how much brand equity Kum & Go enjoyed, so it’s hard to say whether getting rid of it matters much or not. More troubling – to me, anyway – is the comment “Maverik had seen its leadership allegedly promise to maintain both brands”: failing to uphold a promise creates its own problems (as with Watergate “the coverup is worse than the crime”)…tho how much of a promise actually existed seems at issue.
Every brand needs a promise rooted in authenticity for customers to align with it. Time will tell if Maverik was wise to expand its themed brand in the midwest. One of the keys to Maverik’s success is that it engages customers easily having mountains, trails, rivers and lakes within minutes in Utah, Idaho, Nevada.
I believe Maverik’s decision to fold Kum & Go fully into its own branding was a wise move — and based on what I saw firsthand here in Northwest Arkansas, it stands out as one of the best-executed brand transitions I’ve witnessed in retail. The shift didn’t just swap a logo; Maverik managed to preserve the familiarity and convenience that customers associated with Kum & Go while layering in a fresh identity that felt modern, cohesive and relevant. The consistency in store execution, product offering, and atmosphere helped existing customers accept — and new customers embrace — the rebrand without disruption.
Yes — I do believe Maverik’s brand is strong enough to stand on its own merits in the Midwest (and beyond). The success of the transition in a market like Northwest Arkansas demonstrates that a well-positioned, well-managed brand can absorb a regional chain’s history and convert it into a unified, scalable identity. Maverik didn’t just inherit a footprint — it inherited loyalty, but restructured it under a clearly defined brand promise that resonates broadly. The key was the care in execution: everything from signage to product mix to staff training, which made customers feel continuity rather than loss.
From my point of view, this case should serve as a blueprint for other retailers considering consolidation or rebranding. If done with respect to legacy customer relationships, combined with an infusion of new brand energy and disciplined rollout execution — as Maverik did — the outcome can strengthen brand equity rather than erode it.