Words From the Director/CEO: Force Multipliers Are Going Strong For Mission Success

Team,

As we head into the last half of fiscal 2025, your steadfast dedication to advancing the Exchange’s strategic priorities continues to play a significant role in strengthening our military community.

Earnings through July are $247 million, up 9% over plan! These outstanding results are a testament to the commitment and passion each of you bring to the important work Team Exchange does each day.

Here is an update on our achievements through midyear.

The best tastes of home

Select Exchange restaurants at Fort Hood completed a two-week test of the Army’s Flexible Eating & Expanded Dining (FEED) initiative. The Exchange’s Fort Hood, IT, accounting, policy and food teams worked in lockstep with Army leadership to deliver a true campus-style dining experience to a select group of Soldiers, who used their meal entitlements at Burger King, Freshens, Qdoba, Subway and Starbucks. All Exchange platforms worked as planned throughout the highly successful test.

Worldwide, the Exchange opened 15 restaurants during the first half of the year, including a Panda Express at Fort Campbell and USAG Stuttgart, Germany (the third Panda Express in Europe). Less than a month into the third quarter, another Panda Express—the second in Korea—opened Aug. 20 at Osan Air Base. Two Panera Bread locations, at Fort Bliss and Fort Belvoir, opened in August.

Each restaurant opening is a collaborative effort between HQ directorates and associates on the ground and in stores, where teams work with commands to fulfill requests and coordinate grand-opening celebrations, bringing the best tastes of home to our military community.

2025 Exchange restaurant openings to date:

Qdoba: The fast-casual Mexican restaurant opened in June at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Auntie Anne’s: The soft-pretzel shop opened in March at JBSA-Lackland.

Cupbop: The “Korean BBQ in a Cup” restaurant, which appeared on “Shark Tank” in May 2022, opened at Luke AFB and Fort Bliss in June.

Jersey Mike’s: The sandwich shop opened in April on Fort Lewis at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Sbarro: The pizza, pasta and salad restaurant added locations at Forts Campbell, Carson, Leonard Wood and Knox.

Green Beans Coffee: The coffee shop, which began as a café serving deployed service members in Southwest Asia in 1997, opened in the spring at Fort Carson.

Restaurants in Expresses are a vital part of the business, offering grab-and-go convenience to service members and families. A new concept, Express Kitchen, opened in July at Fort Riley’s Big Red 1 Express. Express Kitchen offers croissants, pastries, cookies and more, all made in-house. Hunt Brothers Pizza opened at 10 Expresses, including Misawa Air Base in Japan; six Chopz locations opened; and Hot Stuff Kitchen added a location at Joint Base Lewis-McChord’s renovated North Express.

The Exchange doesn’t simply serve meals, it provides places for families and friends to meet, strengthening connections and Quality of Life.

MILITARY STAR rising

As the Exchange Credit Program approaches the one-year mark of its successful partnership with Discover® Global Network, network sales have exceeded $1 billion! Through this partnership, cardholders can now use this powerful financial tool at an additional 13,000 on-installation facilities worldwide. Sales at these additional locations have already exceeded $30 million.

Today, the MILITARY STAR® card is accepted at over 20,000 on-installation facilities, extending access and benefits for service members, retirees, and their families around the world.

Associates at BXs, PXs and Expresses are instrumental to promoting the MILITARY STAR card. Serving as ambassadors for the program, they proactively engage with customers, many of whom may be applying for their first credit card, about the card’s benefits, such as its competitive, low APR available to all cardholders. Through these conversations, associates explain how the card supports credit building and financial readiness, while answering questions to ensure service members make well-informed financial decisions.

Expanding name-brand partnerships

The Merchandising team is leveraging America’s best-known name brands to provide even more compelling assortments and customer service. ShopMyExchange.com expanded The Home Depot’s offerings beyond appliances to include power tool sets, outdoor power equipment, grills, garden tools, ceiling fans and more. The ShopMyExchange.com assortment from Bass Pro Shops has grown, too, making it the Exchange’s category leader online for outdoor recreation. 

Leveraging technology

The IT and Dan Daniel Distribution Center teams are working on a robotics Goods to Person project that will significantly improve the customer experience, lower costs and increase dividends for the Services’ Quality-of-Life programs. The project is nearing final testing and is scheduled to be implemented in the fall.

Innovative services

The Services team aggressively expanded 24/7 self-service stores, adding more than 40 through July, bringing the total to nearly 670. These markets offer an assortment found in most convenience stores, including snacks, drinks and better-for-you options. They are especially well-received at smaller installations or inside barracks, hospitals and large headquarters, providing 24/7 access at locations such as the Military Corrections Complex at Fort Leavenworth, which opened its 12th self-serve store in July.

The Exchange is fully invested in keeping the military community connected, adding 13 new cell towers and seven mobile centers worldwide. The infrastructure provides broadband services 150,000+ customers and 1,000+ government business customers daily. The telecom team is working on more than 50 infrastructure projects to improve cellular and broadband internet connectivity.

Reinvesting in the shopping experience

Through July, the Real Estate directorate has completed more than $70 million in projects, working with regions, store teams and other directorates as well as military commands to prioritize projects that will provide the greatest return for our Nation’s military community. Openings through July include:

• $15.7 million renovation of the Laughlin AFB Exchange, the first major update of the BX since it was built in 1982.
• $8.2 million upgrade of the Camp Walker Exchange, the first major upgrade since 1999.
• $6.3 million upgrade of the White Sands Missile Range Troop Store. Done in partnership with the Army as part of the Exchange’s Quality-of-Life initiative for remote and isolated locations, it was the store’s first major renovation in 26 years.
• $4.5 million renovation of the Minot AFB Express.
• $2.8 million upgrade to the North Express at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
• $1.8 million upgrade to the Hunter Corner Express at Hunter Army Airfield.
• $8.9 million in Express upgrades at Keesler AFB, Fort Bliss’ Global Reach, Seymour Johnson AFB and Fort Meade.

Family serving family

The Exchange’s 2025 priorities are fully focused on maintaining the family, sustaining the family and investing in our Nation’s military family. It is a gift to have thousands of teammates who are so dedicated to being with service members and their families, giving them support for mission success.

Individually, we are good. Together, we are…unstoppable! Team Exchange, and the hard-earned benefit we are privileged to provide, are proven force multipliers.

It is truly an honor to serve those who serve with you.

Veteran for Life!

Very best,

Tom