When VPS Convenience Store Group sold its Southeast division to GPM Investments LLC in August, CEO Jeff Turpin said it would allow the company to focus on its Midwest division.

Turpin is always looking for opportunities of growth for Wilmington-based VPS, of which he is also chairman.

Throughout his tenure, Turpin has been at the center of numerous sales and acquisitions, maintaining an aggressive business mindset with a shrewd focus on the future.

Built through those acquisitions, VPS improved its operations over
the years by implementing improved merchandizing and industry programs, as well as expanding foodservice operations coupled with substantial store remodels.

Turpin has been with the company since 1995 and became CEO in 2009. After almost 20 years with the company, Turpin recently talked to the Greater Wilmington Business Journal about his years with VPS, his business philosophies and what the future holds.

GWBJ: You’ve had a large hand in growing VPS from 125 to 437 stores before the sale last August. What about your background and experience enabled you to be so successful in growing these chains of stores?

JT: I was lucky enough to grow up in Charlotte and then attend UNCC [University of North Carolina at Charlotte], where I studied accounting and was able to garner a surplus of experience. I had lots of exposure to a variety of fiscal transactions that I’ve continued to use in my professional career to help me be successful. If I could go back and do it all again, I wouldn’t change a thing. My experience at UNCC molded me into the businessman that I am today. I was also a senior audit manager at Deloitte LLP in Charlotte for 12 years before joining VPS, and my experience there developed my skills with both people and realizing opportunities for growth.

GWBJ: What originally sparked your interest in the convenience store business?

JT: I left Deloitte after 12 years because when you don’t make partner after that time period, it is time to move onto something else. I was hesitant to leave Charlotte because it is where I was born and raised, but VPS [at the time Worsley Operating Corp.] had a great number of diverse opportunities in Wilmington. The convenience store business at that time was not close to what it is today. Diversity in business is important to me, and when I was looking to leave Deloitte they simply had the best offers combined with the best opportunities. I’ve been able to develop my relationship with the Worsley family through my years here and couldn’t have joined up with a better group of people.

GWBJ: What has changed most since you joined VPS?

JT: Unfortunately, business is not nearly as profitable. It used to be that convenience stores had a direct advantage in sales because there was so little competition for products like snacks, beer and cigarettes. Now look around today. There are dollar stores, grocery stores, Walmart, all of whom have gotten into the distribution of the very products we sell. I remember when there wasn’t even a Walmart in North Carolina, and now they are literally everywhere. The competitive landscape industry has completely changed. Everyone is fighting for competition, whereas it used to be convenience stores were one of the few chains to offer such products.

GWBJ: What went into the decision to sell the Southeastern distribution rights of VPS?

JT: We had owned the chain of stores for a little over five years, and in this business when the time to sell presents itself, you have to do what is best for the company as well as the employees. The employees will join a larger company with plenty of room for growth, and we get to concentrate on other opportunities and areas to improve. In this business you have to give the customer better value or they will go elsewhere.

GWBJ: What are the plans for Midwest expansion?

JT: There is a far fewer concentration of convenience stores in the Midwest. There are fewer dominant players than the Southeast and also larger structures and units to enhance. We here at VPS have the assets to grow stores much in the same way we did in the Southeast this past decade. Better merchandizing and foodservice will be a priority for initial improvement.

GWBJ: What advice would you give to younger businessmen in today’s job market?

JT: It’d have to go back again to my experience studying accounting at UNCC. If you want to be successful, you have to be exposed to a diverse and challenging environment. Studying accounting gave me the background to become familiar with making a varying amount of transactions and to possess the knowledge of how to improve a company fiscally. Today, I would give the same advice. If you want to get your foot into the business world, I strongly recommend the accounting track. I was blessed to meet the right people along the way to help me, and I’ve never regretted it.

GWBJ: VPS has given a large amount of school grants and donations over the years to local Wilmington schools, as well as other schools in the Southeast. Is this something that is important to you?

JT: Absolutely. We have given over $25,000 in grant funds throughout the years to over 50 schools in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia and plan to continue doing so. It is a great way to give back to your community. These grants help schools to purchase supplemental items such as iPads and graphing calculators that help children become more technologically savvy at a young age.

GWBJ: What’s next for you and VPS?

JT: We are going to continue to concentrate on the Midwest expansion right now. We are going to try to improve their operations and hopefully increase profitability long term. That’s the focus right now going forward.