Another convenience store chain closing all locations | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

When an owner sells a brand, they lose all control over it, unless they have specific clauses in the contract.

Former Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban learned that lesson when he sold the team to Miriam Adelson. She installed her son-in-law, and Cuban’s friend, Patrick Dumont, as the governor of the franchise, and he promptly shut the former owner out of basketball decisions.

Cuban had expected to retain control of the team, but the NBA nixed a clause that would have given him oversight of basketball operations for a period of time. Instead, he found himself on the outside looking in and unable to stop the franchise’s disastrous trade of Luka Dončić.

Something similar happened to former Kum & Go Owner Kyle Krause when he sold his chain to Maverick.

“It’s their decision,” Krause told The Des Moines Register of Maverik’s decision to retire Kum & Go. “They can choose what they do… But certainly talking to them, their intent prior to the sale was to maintain both brands.”

Now, albeit under more pleasant circumstances, Kum & Go will disappear from the retail landscape, right about the time another famous convenience store banner will go away.

EG America plans to sunset the Tom Thumb brand

Tom Thumb has a complicated history, as Kroger once used the branding on both grocery stores and a chain of convenience stores. It still operates the grocery chain, but sold the convenience store business to EG America in 2018.

When EG America, which also owns the Cumberlands Farms brand, bought Tom Thumb, it did not immediately decide to eliminate the brand. That decision was made in 2022.

“We decided to move forward with this brand conversion after conducting extensive research that projected the tremendous growth opportunity to expand the Cumberland Farms brand. In addition to updating and refreshing all of the stores with the Cumberland Farms design, layout, and equipment, we plan to bring expanded food service offerings, including a new Fried Chicken concept, to guests in these communities,” former EG America President George Fournier said in a press release.

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At the time, the chain said the changes would take two years and $50 million. That timetable has not been met.

“If EG America completes the Tom Thumb rebrands within its updated timeline, it’ll have finished the project roughly five years after launch — and about three years behind schedule. When the initiative was first announced, EG Group said it chose to rebrand Tom Thumb to Cumberland Farms after reviewing both banners’ brand affinity and competition,” CStoreDive reported.

In about a year, bothMaverik’s replacement of Kum & Go branding and Tom Thumb stores’ transition to Cumberland Farms will conclude.

Image source&colon; Maverik

Tom Thumb convenience stores timeline

2018: EG Group (via EG America) acquires Kroger’s convenience-store business, including Tom Thumb c-stores. Source: Tom Thumb
Feb. 2022: EG Group officially announces a $50 million rebrand, under which all 113 Tom Thumb convenience stores (in Florida, Alabama, etc.) will convert to Cumberland Farms branding. Source: PR Newswire
May 2022: Rebranding begins. Souce: Cumberland Farms
Sept 2022: First conversions completed: Three Tom Thumb locations in Gulf Shores, AL, re-opened as Cumberland Farms, with 50+ more planned by year’s end. Source: PR Newswire
2023: An additional 50 conversions are projected for the year. Source: CSP Daily News
Nov 2025: EG America reports 35 of 113 Tom Thumb stores have been converted so far; expects to finish the rest in the next 12–15 months. Source: C-Store Dive
2025–2026 (Projected): Conversion expected to be completed (based on company update in late 2025). Source: C-Store Dive
New store features post-conversion: Updated design, equipment, and store layout.
Expanded food service offerings, including a fried chicken concept.
SmartPay Rewards app continues: 10¢ off per gallon on fuel. Source: PR Newswire

Tom Thumb fans were not happy

“This is a really dumb marketing move. How can you all not see that?” wrote Taylor Thorpe in a local news article from NorthEscambia.com that addressed the conversion.

Most of the posts were not happy with the change.

“I’m not calling the Tom Thumb Cumberland Farms. I just refuse to do it. That’s terrible rebranding, and it’s going to fail miserably,” Ann Toothaker posted.

Some people, however, posted comments in favor of the change.

“Cumberland Farms are everywhere in the northeast. They are awesome. Any-sized hot or iced coffee is 99 cents, and they have several flavors and a ton of free add-ons. If you get the app, you save 10 cents off a gallon of gas. They have hot food, and when you buy gas there, they are always giving you free things for fill-ups, like coffee, soda, or chips, etc.,” wrote Mike.

Attorney Aaron Hall shared on his website that a rebranding does bring some risks.

“Consumer confusion may undermine brand equity and market positioning. These vulnerabilities also increase the likelihood of costly disputes and reputational damage,” he wrote.

Couche-Tard owned several convenience store brands across North America and decided to rebrand them all as Circle Ks. That was a change made carefully.

“Changing regional and even the national legacy brands into Circle K was completed with a gentle hand. The dominant red color in the logo harkened to colors used by Mac’s and Kangaroo Express. The orange line beneath the logo pays homage to Statoil brand,” CB4.com shared.

Former Circle K CEO Brian Hannasch told CS News in 2019 that he was happy with the change. “The key learning is, I should have done it a decade ago.”

In terms of his strategy, Hannasch said, “I will start with culture. That’s what I have always said was our secret sauce. Having one brand gives us a platform to communicate across 135,000 employees what we stand for, what we want to become and the journey we are on.”

Tom Thumb closure and conversion FAQs:

Q1: Are Tom Thumb convenience stores closing?A1: Yes. EG America is phasing out the Tom Thumb convenience store brand and converting all locations to Cumberland Farms.

Q2: How many stores will be rebranded?A2: About 113 Tom Thumb convenience stores across Florida, Alabama, and nearby Gulf Coast markets are affected.

Q3: When will the rebranding be complete?A3: Rebranding started in 2022. As of late 2025, 35 stores have been converted, with full completion expected by 2025-2026.

Q4: What changes will customers notice at Cumberland Farms?A4: Customers will see updated layouts, new equipment, expanded food service including fried chicken, and SmartPay Rewards app benefits like 10¢ off per gallon of fuel.

Q5: How are customers responding to the rebrand?A5: Reactions are mixed: Some miss the Tom Thumb brand, while others welcome the updated stores, expanded food offerings, and loyalty perks.