Sheetz Debuts a New Store with Drive-Thru in Beckley, West Virginia; Giving Hundreds of Dollars in Prizes to New Customers

ALTOONA, Pa., March 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Sheetz has opened its first new location in Beckley, West Virginia today at 5481 Robert C. Byrd Drive. Excitement for this store has been heightened with a contest for the first 50 people in line when the doors open.  These lucky customers all won a $100 Sheetz Z-card - good for anything in the store.    

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20061212/CLTU039LOGO )

The buzz about Sheetz has gotten people out of bed to camp out at as early as 4:30 a.m. at stores recently opened in North Carolina.  Customers can play games to win prizes and enjoy samples of Sheetz food and beverages.

"People are lined up and waiting when we get to the store to cut the ribbon," said Stan Sheetz, president and CEO, Sheetz, Inc.  "We can't wait to serve new customers and work to give them the best ever experience in our stores.  We love to see them being as excited as we are to open."  

Doors officially opened to customers Thursday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. and several media and patrons were on-hand for the festivities.  

The new store is the first in West Virginia to offer a drive thru window.  The "Inside Out" service allows customers to purchase anything they get inside the store outside at the window.  

The 6,500 square-foot facility will offer fresh food items like the MTGo! And Shweetz Bakery lines of sandwiches, wraps, donuts and muffins, along with the signature MTO® line of Angus beef burgers, premium grilled chicken sandwiches, freshly made salads, French fries, onion rings and more.

Sheetz Bros. Coffeez®, a full-service espresso and smoothie bar staffed by a trained barista is going to be available at the new store. Customers can order hand-made specialty coffee drinks including lattes, cappuccinos and mochas - hot, frozen or iced.

The new store sits directly in front of The Crossroads Mall, giving shoppers there the opportunity to enjoy the convenience of visiting both places.

Crossroads Mall is a Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust Property. PREIT, founded in 1960 and one of the first equity REITs in the U.S., has a primary investment focus on retail shopping malls.  Currently, the Company's portfolio consists of 49 retail properties, including 38 shopping malls, 8 strip and power centers, and three development properties. 

The Company's properties are located in 13 states in the eastern half of the United States, primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region. The operating retail properties have approximately 34 million total square feet of space. PREIT is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

The Company's website can be found at www.preit.com.  PREIT is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol PEI.

Sheetz is also proud of its tradition of giving back to the communities in which it operates. Especially important to the organization is finding ways to be involved with today's young people.  As part of today's celebration, the company will make a donation to Special Olympics of West Virginia.  Sheetz has been a proud supporter of Special Olympics since 1992, making monetary and product contributions as well as providing event volunteers.

Established in 1952 in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Sheetz, Inc. is one of America's fastest growing family-owned and operated convenience store chains, with more than $4.5 billion in revenue for 2010 and more than 13,500 employees.  The company operates more than 385 convenience locations throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina.  Sheetz provides an award-winning menu of MTO® subs, sandwiches and salads, which are ordered through unique touch-screen order point terminals.  Sheetz currently ranks on the Best Places to Work list in Ohio and North Carolina and has been on that list in Pennsylvania for eight consecutive years.  All Sheetz convenience stores are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  For more information, visit www.sheetz.com.

SOURCE Sheetz