Stewart Spinks reflects on the blessings of his business, family, and community.
A lifelong early riser, Stewart Spinks, the Spinx company’s founder and chairman, looks forward “to what each day holds.”
With no signs of slowing down, the 78-year-old divides his days between his office and his philanthropic work with the Spinks Family Foundation. Or he might get a chance to head skyward. After earning his pilot’s license at 34, he has accumulated more than 6,500 flight hours.
Whatever the day brings, the self-described “realistic optimist” has learned to appreciate its blessings. “One of my real blessings around what one calls work is making it not ‘work,’ having fun with what I do,” he says. “I’ve somehow found a way to have fun with every job I’ve ever had.”
Spinks’ childhood helped shape that outlook and his drive to succeed, along with his belief in helping others. Born in Charleston, he grew up in Augusta, Georgia, in a family with meager means. He learned the value of hard work by watching his parents.
He also saw his father—an auto mechanic during the day and a hospital orderly at night—give free mechanical assistance and provide shelter to friends and family in need.
“It goes on and on,” he adds, referencing the charitable acts he witnessed. “Today I believe philanthropy is an investment in perpetuating the strength of the community to serve each other and to raise everyone up.”
Spinks’ mother, who worked the second shift in a hotel, “always expected me to do the right thing and be successful,” he says. “I had a mom with high expectations, but she didn’t expect me to be a service station operator. She never criticized that move. I knew she had that confidence in me.”
His entrepreneurial confidence came as a territory representative for the Shell Oil Co. (he was hired after graduating from University of Tennessee in 1968). He first worked in Atlanta, then briefly in Columbia before landing in Greenville. The position taught him how to run a business and about customer relations.
In 1972, he bought Shell’s worst-performing gas station at the corner of Laurens Road and East Washington Street. The knowledge he’d gained from watching his dad change tires and replace batteries helped him in running it.
One of what Spinks calls his most momentous life moments came when he bought a heating oil and gas distributorship. Its owner, Joe Foster, financed part of the deal, writing the then 26-year-old a check at closing “so I could write a check back to him for the trucks.”
The transaction “made it possible for me . . . to grow a business that had potential beyond one piece of property,” Spinks shares, adding that he paid Foster back within five years.
Through dedication, hard work, and some of Spinks’ tough decisions along the way, the company grew and marked its 50th anniversary in 2022. It now has over 80 locations statewide and more than 1,400 employees in its stores, food operations, and related businesses, according to the Spinx website.
The company recently announced plans for a new market concept in the former Cook’s Station location on South Main Street. Those kinds of new store designs will continue, Spinks says, as the company continues its long-standing belief in adapting to consumers’ changing convenience needs.
“[That’s] fun stuff. Running the new operations is where the real hard work resides. The Spinx team is so capable and worthy of that,” he adds.
For Spinks, this phase of life has brought with it wisdom from his experiences and the hope of patiently using it. “I think the trust I have in other people today is greater than I’ve ever had in my life. I’m recognizing the talent I have around me.”
While Spinks admits he can’t help thinking about how quickly time passes, he continues to welcome each day. “I’ve got good, valuable time left, and I’ve got so much to look forward to with the positive things going on with my family, my business, the community,” he says.
“I have more to offer my family, friends, and associates inside and outside the companies,” he continues. “If I am effective, the communities where our families and businesses are born and raised will be more successful.”
Stewart Spink Fact File
Accomplishments: He and his wife, Martha, were recognized as “Individual Philanthropist of the Year” by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) in 2019. His entrepreneurial efforts earned him a spot in the Convenience Store News Hall of Fame and the Greenville Tech Entrepreneur Award. He received the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian honor, in December 2022.
Favorite spot in Greenville: The corner of Laurens and—now—Stewart Spinks roads, “right where I started,” he says. “It’s got my heart, and now it’s got my name.”
Favorite food: Italian
Favorite football team: The University of Tennessee. Spinks attended the school on a football scholarship and played defensive end.
Favorite time of day: Early morning, because “your mind is fresh, and you have a fresh day to look forward to.”
