OKLAHOMA CITY — Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores plans to open as many as 50 travel stops in 2021, including more than 30 with Love's Truck Care or Speedco preventive maintenance and tire services on site.
The expansion plan builds on a "challenging" 2020, when the Oklahoma City-based company opened 38 truck-servicing plazas with over 3,000 parking spaces and donated several million dollars to fight COVID-19, injustice and poverty and to help sick and injured children.
"2020 was difficult, but our teams worked together to open new locations, add parking spaces and serve customers despite the pandemic," Love's President Shane Wharton said.
"In 2021, we'll grow our travel stop network where our customers have asked us to, add new products and services and open new truck care centers to get professional truck drivers back on the road quickly and safely."
Love's network of Travel Stops numbers more than 540 locations in 41 states, including over 400 with Speedco or Love's Truck Care services on site through over 1,500 service bays. The company changed the name of its truck maintenance network in late 2020 to Love's Truck Care from Love's Truck Tire Care to reflect the evolution of the preventive maintenance service portfolio available at its Travel Stops.
Love's carries 10 brands of tires at its Love's Truck Care and Speedco outlets: BFGoodrich, Bridgestone, Continental, Dayton, Double Coin, Goodyear, Hankook, Kelly, Michelin and Yokohama, along with Love's own Oliver Rubber system retreads.
Love's recently promoted Gary Price to executive vice president of its Truck Care operations, succeeding the retiring Tom Edwards. His responsibilities include Love's Tire Retread and Distribution Center network, which has six locations across the country and plans to expand in 2021.