Yesway Sold 29 Midwest C-Stores for $21 Million — to a Surprise Buyer

Yesway has officially sold its 29 convenience stores in Iowa and Kansas for $21 million, and the buyer is not Mega Saver — it's Texas-based Now & Forever. The switch ended a nearly two-year divestiture process and surprised an industry that had treated the Mega Saver sale as done.

C-Store Dive first reported nearly two years ago that Yesway intended to sell its Iowa and Kansas locations after determining they no longer fit its strategy. Yesway said at the time the sites would be sold by the end of 2025. That June, C-Store Dive reported that Nebraska-based Mega Saver was in talks to acquire them. In early November, a Mega Saver spokesperson confirmed the retailer had officially agreed to the purchase. Employees at some stores said rebranding dates were already set.

The deal for more than two dozen stores in a key region seemed finished. The only open question was the closing date.

It never came on schedule. The process dragged into 2026, and even when Yesway went public in April, the Iowa and Kansas sales had not closed. Then last month, Yesway announced the $21 million sale — to Now & Forever — marking the divestiture of most of its Midwest convenience stores.

What happened to the Mega Saver deal?

The exact moment Yesway's first agreement collapsed is unclear. Filings Yesway made with the Securities and Exchange Commission between February and April show it agreed to sell the locations to an undisclosed buyer for $17.5 million plus inventory. If that buyer was Mega Saver, the agreement appears to have fallen apart by early summer.

Representatives from Mega Saver did not respond to multiple requests for comment on what happened to its agreement. A Yesway spokesperson declined to comment, citing the company's quiet period.

Executives from Now & Forever told their side of the story. Shayan Farooqi, CEO and co-founder of Khawar & Sons, Now & Forever's parent company, said he learned during that early-summer period that the earlier agreement might be in trouble. That prompted him to act.

"We identified the Yesway sites in June and upon learning Mega Saver may not close, started to aggressively pursue the acquisition," Farooqi said.

He soon learned the agreement had "fallen apart," meaning Yesway was no longer under contract with Mega Saver. "We were told by the brokers that the deal was no longer in contract and they were taking bids," he said.

How Now & Forever won the bidding

Now & Forever entered a bidding process for all 29 locations. Confidentiality restrictions kept Farooqi from learning who the other prospective buyers were. He said he offered Yesway $1 million within a week of signing the purchase agreement.

Komal Farooqi, Khawar & Sons' chief brand officer and Shayan Farooqi's sister, was one of the first Now & Forever team members on the ground during initial surveys of the locations after her brother suggested acquiring them. The retailer, which has only had about 20 c-stores in Texas until now, spent the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first half of 2026 touring acquisition targets across the country, she said. The Yesway stores stood out for their established operations, trained employees and loyal customers.

The math explains the appeal: 29 established stores with trained staff and existing customer bases, versus a portfolio of roughly 20 Texas locations. With this single deal, Now & Forever has more than doubled its store count and entered two new states and an entirely new region of the country.

"We're stepping into a well-kept ecosystem and adding our own touches," Komal Farooqi said. "That means a fast, organized handover and a rollout that new communities and travelers will experience firsthand."

What does this change for the Midwest c-store market? It replaces an in-region consolidator with an out-of-state operator making its first move into the territory — one that now has to execute a fast handover across 29 sites while Yesway completes its retreat from the region.