DES MOINES – Beginning August 1, Iowa-based convenience retailer Casey’s General Stores is planning to open a new store concept that focuses on a customer foodservice favorite: pizza.

The Des Moines Register reports that Ankeny-based Casey’s is opening a 1,600-square-foot store, Casey’s Pizza Express, that will sell pizza whole and by the slice, fountain drinks, bread sticks and chicken wings. The store will also feature a self-serve frozen yogurt bar with several flavors and toppings.

“The demand for pizza in Pleasant Hill is very strong, and we wanted an alternative to serve the east side of Des Moines,” Bill Walljasper, senior vice president and CFO, told the newspaper. He added that in 2012, Casey’s sold about 12 million whole pies and 48 million pizza slices. And although Casey’s pizzas come with a variety of toppings, such as buffalo chicken, the most popular topping pepperoni.

Casey’s began its pizza delivery service in April 2012 in Grimes, Iowa, and now more than 225 of Casey’s 1,749 stores offer delivery.

l c-store merchandise, such as cigarettes, groceries and donuts. “It will be a stand-alone pizza store without the other amenities,” he said.