Local businessman's vision brings travel stop to rural Axtell
AXTELL — This unincorporated community in eastern McLennan County boasts cattle galore, wind turbines on the horizon, and flags everywhere that look suspiciously like something Texas Longhorn fans would fly.
Overall, it is one of the most rural areas of the county. An estimated 2,587 people live in its sprawling ZIP Code, which works out to just 43 per square mile, according to the Texas Demographic Center.
Now it has a travel center with gas, groceries, hot food and novelties, built by one of its own.
Axtell resident Dustin Johnson this summer opened Longhorn Station at the Farm-to-Market 2311/Heritage Parkway intersection at State Highway 31. The state highway connects Waco to Corsicana, with few gas stations in between.
Not really a strategic location in years past, it now shows promise.
The city of Waco's new landfill is just a few miles away at TK Parkway, where a new overpass has been built. The Texas Department of Transportation plans to spend $16.2 million placing another overpass at the Heritage Parkway intersection, to be complete in 2026.
Johnson, who lives in Axtell with his wife and two children, grew up in China Spring, studied business at the University of Texas at Tyler, and discovered shortly thereafter he was not meant to live in the city.
His wife, Kassidy Johnson, a principal in the Connally Independent School District, said the couple put down roots in Axtell in 2014.
A few years later her husband expressed a desire to open a service station or mini-travel center. Scouting trips via pickup, up and down Highway 31 produced a prime location.
Once ranchland or prairie, the site now accommodates a multi-pump Valero-branded convenience store, with multiple touches the Johnsons wanted to include to make their investment unique.
Buc-ee's it is not, but a man sporting a Buc-ee's bumper sticker on his pickup stopped there last Thursday, joining a steady flow of customers. The 5,000-square-foot building resembles a stately manor, without gaudy lighting and signage, though it does sell lottery tickets.
High ceilings give it a cavernous feel, affording room for a grill where friendly staffers cook up burgers, pizza, meatloaf and breakfast dishes. Longhorn Station stays open all the time, so it welcomes Axtell Longhorns' fans to gather there after football games.
It sells beer, soft drinks, groceries and novelty items, including wisecracking clothing and gear that are browse-worthy.
The store uses and sells beef from Angus cattle raised near Axtell, at Den-Tex Farms.
Manager Cindy Mynar said operations are running smoothly. She employs more than 30 people who keep Longhorn Station percolating.
Dustin Johnson comes into the store often, though he admitted with a laugh he can't run the register, "though I wish I could when the lines are long."
He runs a heavy-equipment rental business at Longhorn Station, so there is no shortage of big rigs loitering on the parking lot's outskirts. Where the lot is covered with gravel, Johnson said he plans a resurfacing.
Johnson said he had to locate a brand-name gasoline supplier to make the venture work, "and Valero's name kept coming up." Financing also became a necessity. Johnson said people advised him to pursue a loan from the Small Business Administration, but discovered that convenience stores don't top the SBA's list of priorities.
His search ended with Wallis Bank in San Antonio, "which specializes in convenience stores," Johnson said. The Wallis Bank website touts its dedication to making loans to small businesses and entrepreneurs. It says Wallis Bank was founded in 1906 in Wallis, Texas, and has opened locations in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Phoenix.
Johnson said he continues to learn the nuances of operating a convenience store or mini-travel center. He said he wanted to maintain a clean store with clean restrooms, and so far his staff has met his expectations.
He strives to keep gasoline prices competitive with those in Bellmead, about 10 miles away. He hopes traveling families take a pit stop at Longhorn Station, and he has stockpiled domino sets, checkers and board games to keep youngsters occupied while family members stretch their legs or wait on a food order.
If his own children are on the premises, he said, he may urge them to break out a game and play, signaling to others that the games are not part of the decor.
To suggest Longhorn Station has something for just about everyone would not approach overstatement. It sells canned goods, produce, fountain drinks, over-the-counter medicine, ice cream, candies, gimme caps and earrings.
Johnson said his family helps him track trends in the retail industry.
Mynar said traffic approaches 300 to 400 people daily, on average. Johnson said the customer mix includes Axtell residents and travelers passing through the area. He said he and his wife enjoy stopping at "places like this" on their travels, and he believes Longhorn Station can hold its own.
