At a glance

Who are Applegreen?

What we do

We are leaders and innovators in roadside retail encompassing food, fuel and convenience offerings. Our global workforce includes retail experts, food scientists, interior designers, architects, fuel economists, traders, hoteliers and all of our corporate functions. Entrepreneurship is our core DNA, as we have grown from one site in 1992 to over 600 today, and we continue to grow.

We are the largest motorway service area operator in both Ireland and the US, and the second largest in the UK. We have annual turnover of more than €4.1 billion and employ almost 18,000 people.

Our strategy is to grow the Group by acquiring and developing new service areas in the three countries in which we operate, as well as upgrading and rebranding our existing locations as required.

Our shareholders

Bob Etchingham

Co-Founder and Executive Chairman

Joe Barrett

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Blackstone

Infrastructure Partner

Applegreen core values

Our customers and communities are at the heart of everything we do.

Our customers come first. Simple as that.

That means, we listen to them and learn from them. We aim to consistently meet their daily needs with brilliant basics. And we anticipate and respond to our customers ever-changing needs, whether it’s electric vehicle re-charging, convenience shopping, or the latest and emerging food trends. This focus from all our staff regardless of our roles or location ensures our customers come back to us again and again.

We also look after the things our customers and our business care about. We give back generously to the communities we serve through our charitable fund and we minimise our impact on the environment through our commitment to sustainable solutions and initiatives.

We value and develop our people.

We believe that everyone contributes to the culture and success of Applegreen.

Whether working on one of our sites or at a desk in a support function, we are one team, which supports and encourages each other to be the best that we can be.

We create opportunities for people to learn from each other, to grow and develop their skills and to progress in their careers. We value and benefit from having people from all over the world, with diverse backgrounds, talents and perspectives, working together.

We recognise and reward hard work, smart thinking and commitment. We always show respect and appreciation as we understand it is our people that deliver our business and support our customers.

We are driven by pace, passion and performance.

There is no one word that captures our drive, our positive energy, our tenacity, and our ability to deliver and to perform in a demanding environment.

That passionate commitment to our business and ownership, drive and adaptability are hallmarks of our behaviour. We operate at pace to stay ahead of the industry, and are always focused on financial discipline and delivering value for our customers and our shareholders. We believe in being solution minded and see urgency as a strength in making things happen.

These qualities have built our business. They are what we are known for today and traits that will carry us forward into the future.

We seek opportunities and embrace change.

We always strive to think ahead and go beyond.

We actively seek out new opportunities and better ways of doing things, always ready and willing to adapt and never accepting the status quo.

We empower our staff to seek new ideas and embrace change, always seeking to lead and disrupt. This requires us to be courageous, to be innovative, to be solutions-focused, and to learn fast from our successes and our failures. Entrepreneurship is part of our DNA yet we are always disciplined in how we deliver our ideas and plans.

Leadership team

Bob Etchingham

Co-Founder and Executive Chairman

Joe Barrett

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Niall Dolan

Group CFO

John Diviney

COO Applegreen Europe and CEO of Welcome Break

Fiona Matthews

Group Chief Commercial Officer and Managing Director, Ireland

Zack Kollias

US Travel Plaza, President

Ronan Ryan

Chief Investments Officer

Líadhain Canavan

Chief Legal Officer And Company Secretary

Eugene Moore

CEO Applegreen Electric

Our story so far

In 2021, Applegreen moved from a publicly quoted company to private ownership status, in partnership with Blackstone Infrastructure Partners.

The Group has four divisions, covering our three markets of Ireland, the UK and the US and our Applegreen Electric subsidiary, which is rolling out a network of EV fast chargers and charging hubs in our core markets.

Our business comprises large-scale food and beverage operations, convenience stores, and roadside refuelling, including EV charging options. We also operate ancillary businesses, such as hotels, commercial fuel supply, and aircraft refuelling.

We partner with a large number of high-quality international brands, including, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Burger King, Shake Shack, KFC, Chick-Fil-A, Subway, Greggs, 7-Eleven, and Chopstix. We also operate our own brands, Bakewell and Braeburn coffee.

1992

First store opens

First store opens on Sarsfield Road in Dublin. Steady growth for the first number of years across Ireland.

2005

Applegreen brand is born

First Applegreen branded store opens in Urlingford, Co Kilkenny.

2008

Applegreen expands to the UK

First UK forecourt is opened and added to the 50 plus locations operating in Ireland.

2009

Applegreen Charitable Fund launches and our distribution centre opens

A Charitable Fund is created to support local communities, and a distribution centre for the non-food business was opened in Leixlip.

 

 

2010

First 6 Motorway Service Areas open in Ireland and Applegreen begins partnerships with brands such as Burger King and Costa

New service areas are opened in Lusk, Castlebellingham and Enfield on the M1 and M4 motorways.

2013

Four Motorway Service Areas open in Northern Ireland and Applegreen launches its own food brand offering The Bakewell

2014

Applegreen launches in the US

Applegreen expands to the US, with first sites opening in New York. Fuel Card and Dealer offers launch.

2015

Applegreen goes Public and completes successful IPO on the Irish & London Stock Exchange

2017

Applegreen acquires Brandi Group (US), Carsley Group (UK) & stake in Joint Fuel Terminal (Ireland)

Deals add 42 sites in South Carolina, seven locations in the UK and a 50% stake in a Dublin Port fuel facility.

2018

Welcome Break Acquisition

Applegreen buys UK motorway service operator Welcome Break, adding 26 service areas and 29 hotels.

2019

10 year anniversary of charitable fund and launch of its airline refuelling business in Ireland

Applegreen Charitable Fund celebrates 10 years. More than €3M was raised for charity partners during its first decade.

2020

Applegreen Graduate Programme launched

The Graduate Programme is launched with the aim of developing high potential graduates into the future leaders of the business.

2021

Applegreen is taken private and expands further in the US market

Applegreen is taken private by its founders and Blackstone Infrastructure Partners, acquiring HMS Host’s 60 motorway service areas and 27 on the New York State Thruway.

 

 

2022

Launch of the Marks and Spencer partnership in Ireland

Applegreen and M&S Food agree a new deal to offer M&S Food products at selected Applegreen outlets.

2023

Launch of new own brand, Braeburn Café.

Applegreen opens its first standalone Braeburn drive thru café in Ashbourne, Co. Meath in Ireland.

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