Knoxville businessman and philanthropist James A. Haslam II will receive the hall of fame award
from the National Association of Truck Stop Operators next month, according to Convenience
Store News.
Haslam, is the founder of Pilot Corp. and chairman emeritus of Pilot Flying J, the largest travel center operator in North America.
The award will be presented Feb. 5 and at an event in Savannah. His son, James A. “Jimmy” Haslam will present the award.
The largest travel center operator in North America is expanding its presence in the restaurant business.
Pilot Flying J recently opened its 300th company owned and operated restaurant and plans to open another 23 restaurants by the end of the year, the Knoxville-based company said Tuesday.
The 300th milestone was reached with the opening of a Huddle House at the company’s travel center in Anna, Texas, on June 11.
Pilot operates the largest travel center network in North America with more than 600 locations.
Update: Canada location corrected.
Pilot Flying J continues to expand its North American footprint. The Knoxville-
based company announced today it will open seven new travel centers in June and July.
Six locations will be in the U.S. – Cleveland, Tenn.; Anna, Texas; Murdo, S.D.; Ferndale, Wash.; Klamath Falls, Ore.; Sioux City, Iowa – and one in Canada in Nanton, Alberta.
Pilot Flying J operates the largest travel center network in North America with more than 600 locations.
Pilot Travel Centers has invested a truckload of money in recent years building a reputation for serving premium coffee. Now, the Knoxville based company is spending another bunch of cash to upgrade the coffee bars at its recently acquired Flying J locations.
The company is spending approximately $150,000 per location on new coffee/deli bars at the Flying J travel centers.
“In the last 18 months we made a commitment to being a coffee authority,” said Whitman Harson, manager of hot beverages for Pilot Flying J. “Drivers know what we deliver they an trust. They know it’s going to be a great cup of coffee.”
It looks like Knoxville-based Pilot Travel Centers’ take-over of the Flying J truck stop chain is close to happening.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Flying J could come out of bankruptcy by the end of July. Also, Flying J CEO Crystal Call Maggelet told the Tribune the merger with Pilot is “in the last stages of [Federal Trade Commission] approval.”
It’s been nearly a year since Pilot and Ogden, Utah-based Flying J announced plans to merge. When the deal finally happens it will make Pilot, which is already a major player in the national travel center busines, THE major player with 550 or more locations in North America.
The big dog keeps getting bigger.
That sound you heard a few days ago were jaws dropping in newsrooms all over Knoxville when a certain political TV ad began airing.
For years the Pilot PR machine has bashed anyone in the local media who was foolish enough to describe the business founded by James A Haslam II, the company’s powerful and politically connected chairman, as a truck stop operator.
The hammer has come down hard on those who dared utter “Pilot” and “truck stop” in the same sentence. It’s travel centers. Repeat: travel centers. Don’t make that mistake again.
Which makes one wonder how the TV spot ever saw the light of day.