New management at Southside Travel Center

Michael Hughes is the new store manager for Exxon Southside and Justin Popp is the new manager for Champs Chicken, which are both located in the Travel Center on the south edge of Thermopolis. Both entered these positions on January 1. 

Hughes said he has been focusing on inventory and other improvements. “I’ve added shifts and people. Now there are always two people on shifts. We had a truck driver with a certain kind of card which would require a 10-minute phone call, which would cause a line of customers waiting to check out.” 

Hughes added, “Second, we are really trying to incorporate the locals. It seems like the locals were not big shoppers here.” 

Hughes is trying a variety of changes to attract customers, such as having deals and discounts and to incorporate the art of the community, such as the Bobcat logo, celebrating the school’s sports teams, or local musicians, such as Acoustic Jams to play to bring the community members in.

Hughes worked previously at Maverick and then took a position at Southside about a year ago. Hughes said, “The shelves, the atmosphere, I want to breathe life into it.”

Hughes reported how the changes to the store are paying off. Hughes said, “We are making numbers they made in the summer. That’s huge.” These results are happening in the wintertime, which is typically the slowest part of the year. Hughes added, “We’ve created an energy. We really have.”

Hughes has a background in accounting and Popp has experience in food service. Their relationship has been very interdependent and has great synergy. Hughes said, “We’ve been flying by the seat of our pants. For me, I am from Charleston, South Carolina. Which is the most polite city in the world. That’s what I try to bring. It’s just that happiness. It’s what I told them in our first meeting. On our license plate in South Carolina one time, it said ‘Smiling faces, beautiful places.’ That’s what I want. That’s my vision for here.”

The store is not a corporate-owned store, even though it is branded with Exxon. Hughes emphasized the vision of supporting a locally owned businesses. 

Hughes continued and said, “The tourists are gonna come, but it’s the locals I want. We want a community. I want to make it a family place. That’s what we are really trying to do. Everyone involved in this store lives here in town, except one of the owners lives in Casper.”   

Justin Popp also started January 1 as the new manager for Champs Chicken. Just in the first month of 2022, they have tripled in sales. Hughes added, regarding remedying their inventory. He said, “Our gross margin sales last year was about $1,000 at this time and here we are at $5,300. All I’ve done is get the right prices on the items and make sure we have the items here.” 

Popp added about Champs, “It really comes down to the locals. What I’ve seen in my short time here, it was very tourist-dependent… Our biggest goal was to bring locals back. We changed up our recipe. We use a different flour. It’s got a little bit of seasoning to it. We make a lot of smaller batches of food. It’s more of a cook to order. It’s hot and fresh, ready to eat. We basically cook less, more often. Honestly, that’s been the biggest difference I’ve seen.” 

Popp emphasized the customers had a choice and that Champs Chicken is one of those choices if they want hot, fresh chicken. Popp added about the customers’ experience, he said, “When they come in the doors, they are welcome. They get a smile on their faces and they get fresh food fast. That’s my whole goal.… We have seen a dramatic increase in sales and it’s only the beginning.”