BEST NEW STORE DESIGN AWARDS

Simon Xpress and Oak Grove Market showcase new designs that compete in the evolving c-store space.

Emily Boes • Associate Editor

WINNER: Simon Xpress

Simon Xpress, a family tribute, features a modern, clean look with a high ceiling and a glass front.

Convenience stores are increasingly renovating and experimenting with store design.

CStore Decisions is recognizing Simon Xpress with a “Best New Store Design Award” for its clean, upscale and modern design, complete with a dedicated foodservice area.

Owned by Island Lane Capital and designed by Federal Health, Simon Xpress operates one branded location in Warren, Mich., although President of Island Lane Capital Faiz Simon also operates 14 other sites that he built from the ground up under a different banner name.

Simon Xpress is dedicated to Simon’s father, Ramzi Simon, who was born in 1933 and passed away Sept. 5, 2012. Ramzi taught his son to always try, be patient and never give up.

“So I decided to build a really nice-looking site to dedicate it to my father,” Faiz Simon said. “My father passed away 10 years ago, and he inspired me to be the best person around and … he really helped me (get to) where I’m at. I dedicated the building for him and the design.”

Simon plans to build two more convenience store locations branded under the Simon Xpress name.

A Modern Design

Simon Xpress is a bright and colorful 4,700-square-foot store with a 24-foot ceiling. The color scheme is mostly white, which Simon chose because it looks clean, with green accents to allude to his belief in a “green” environment. Green was also his father’s favorite color. The building is made of white and charcoal brick with glass extending nearly to the sidewalk. It has an automatic entrance.

“I’m all about modern colors and modern style design of the c-store,” said Simon. The front of the building features the name of the brand with “Market + Meals” underneath.

Best New Store Design Award

Tony Camilletti and Michael Benincasa of Federal Health, who Simon has worked with previously, helped design the store.

“I told them (what) my vision of a store would look like; I told them I’m looking for customer service, walking in and walking out and getting the experience,” said Simon. “I wanted them to help me take my design ideas that I have, my ability to think of customers’ convenience. ... So I told them about all that and they came up with this design for me.”

The forecourt at Simon Xpress features bp-branded gas pumps that can serve up to 10 vehicles at a time. The exterior also holds a patio for guests and 14 car parking spaces.

RSP Construction helped build the site and Barrick Enterprises supplied the fuel.

IN-STORE ATTRIBUTES

Inside Simon Xpress, customers will find Buscemis and Einstein Bros. Bagels situated next to each other. Buscemis, local to Michigan, serves Detroit-style deep dish pizza, as well as strombolis, calzones and more.

“Buscemis is known for pizza. Their specialty (is) when it comes to the sauce. They have a great sauce. They have a great cheese,” said Simon.

Einstein Bros. offers guests bagels with six different cream cheese varieties, lunch options and specials. The franchise also has a coffee program with hot and cold specialty drinks such as cappuccinos and lattes.

The store installed a separate coffee island that offers decaf, vanilla, hazelnut and regular coffee.

In addition to these two foodservice concepts, Simon Xpress features a roller grill program positioned in front of the other food offerings.

Directly next to Einstein Bros. is an area for fountain beverages. The section includes f’real ice cream as well as an 18-head fountain machine. An Icee machine sits directly next to f’real with four heads of Icee products.

“And we have on the other side where the island is, (in) front of it, we have three different kinds of frozen serve beverages. It’s by Tropical Surf,” said Simon.

Simon Xpress also boasts a large 24-foot wine section, with both sides of the shelves serving this beverage segment.

“We have eight different venues from Northern Michigan that we serve the wine from. … And we’ve got French, we have Spanish wine; we have California as well and New Zealand varieties,” said Simon.

In addition to a robust wine selection the store features a 30-foot-by-16-foot liquor selection with a plethora of options as well as a walk-in beer cave.

Simon Xpress also features a 10-foot open case refrigeration cooler with four levels of prepared food.

“I’ll tell you, we have so many compliments right now. I’ve got not only customers, but our competitors coming in and taking videos, taking pictures,” said Simon. “The colors, the ceiling, everything is top notch.”