Kum & Go's first urban store brings healthier options, sustainable packaging to downtown Des Moines

A one-of-kind Kum & Go in downtown Des Moines, opening Thursday, will offer snacks, made-to-order sandwiches and pizza, and a selection of city-themed T-shirts ⁠— but no gas.

Located in the Edna Griffin building on the corner of Seventh and Locust streets, the location will be the company's first urban convenience store.  

"We're a convenience store, but we're also moving toward being an 'immediate consumption' brand," Kum & Go spokesperson Ariel Rubin said. "How can we get to people where they are, when they are, in the many different ways they want to be served?"

The store will prioritize healthier items, like sandwiches and salads, over traditional gas-station fare. There also will be an emphasis on sustainability: Tableware and straws will be compostable and the store will use paper bags instead of plastic.

"We see this as a space where we can try new things out and see if they work," Rubin said. 

A piece of art facing Locust Street honors the history of the site.

The Edna Griffin Building is named for a civil rights leader who in 1948 led sit-ins and protests at a drugstore at the location that had refused her service because she was African American. That led to an Iowa Supreme Court ruling that made it illegal in Iowa to deny service based on race.

Created by Jordan Weber, a Des Moines native, the mural shows protesters from Ferguson, Missouri, next to images of Griffin's earlier picket lines. In LED lights over the photos is the phrase, "Law of Conscience!"

“In 1948, the store in this space became notorious as a symbol of exclusion and prejudice," Kum & Go president Tanner Krause said in a news release. "I’m honored that Kum & Go is in this same space, 70 years later, our doors proudly open to everyone.”

Weber dedicated the piece to the memory of George Floyd, Kum & Go announced in an Instagram post. Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died Monday in Minneapolis after a white police officer knelt on his neck while Floyd repeatedly told the officer he couldn't breathe.

The 135-year-old building also is being renovated to provides apartments and office space.

For subscribers:See inside the 135-year-old Edna Griffin Building, converted into apartments, office, retail

Kum & Go joins four other convenience stores within a three-block radius downtown. Dollar General DGX, a grab-and-go version of Dollar General which offers more food options, opened in early 2020 in the Equitable Building. The Downtown Pantry is on street level in the Fleming Building. There are also two skywalk convenience stores nearby: Lzaza Food & Snacks in the Bank of America building and The Marketplace in Capital Square.

Jim Hertel, senior vice president of Inmar Intelligence, who tracks convenience stores, said in December that supply and demand will be at play, but that generally speaking, business districts can support a convenience store on just about every block these days.

Hertel said expansion from companies like Dollar General and Kum & Go reflects a societal change in how people consume, as workers are abandoning traditional lunches, grabbing quick items they can eat at their desks. 

Downtown Kum & Go hours

• Monday-Friday, 5 a.m.-9 p.m.
• Saturday ⁠and Sunday, 7 a.m.-5 p.m.

Katie Akin is a retail reporter for the Register. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com or at 515-284-8041. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin.

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