Dive Brief:
- QuikTrip has agreed to sell its MedWise Urgent Care business to healthcare provider Saint Francis Health System, a spokesperson from the convenience retailer confirmed to C-Store Dive.
- The deal includes QuikTrip’s nine MedWise facilities in Oklahoma, nearly all of which are located near the retailer’s headquarters in Tulsa. A sale price was not disclosed, but QuikTrip said it will direct the proceeds back to MedWise employees through avenues like retention bonuses.
- This marks the end of a six-year experiment for QuikTrip, which opened its first urgent care centers during the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dive Insight:
QuikTrip debuted its first MedWise in fall 2020 in Coweta, Oklahoma, about 30 miles east of downtown Tulsa. Over the next few years, the retailer increased its investment in these facilities and outlined plans to have 15 clinics in Tulsa and bring them to nearby regions such as Wichita, Kansas, and Kansas City, Missouri. By the end of 2023, QuikTrip ran 14 MedWise facilities in Oklahoma, according to its website.
QuikTrip is now divesting its MedWise business, and the sale comes as the convenience retail industry faces a difficult operating environment highlighted by an increasingly expensive economy. C-store visits are down as consumers tighten their wallets, and the ongoing war with Iran has skyrocketed the price of oil.
In a statement to C-Store Dive, QuikTrip’s spokesperson emphasized that the deal does not include QuikMed, QuikTrip’s network of internal primary care facilities for company employees, which remains operational. A spokesperson from Saint Francis Health System did not respond by press time to comment on the deal.
“This transition will allow MedWise employees to continue to grow and succeed by leveraging Saint Francis Health System’s highly respected hospital network and clinical scale to provide excellent care to Oklahomans,” QuikTrip’s spokesperson said.
