Skinny's was founded in 1974 by Joe E. Davis, current CEO.  Skinny's began with one store located at Texas Avenue and S. 14th Street in Abilene, TX.  

Skinny's #1 was originally a gas station that was to be remodeled for a different Convenience Store Chain.  Mr. Davis, the Contractor in charge of the remodeling project and an Executive of the Chain were only dollars apart on an agreement for the project, but when the two could not come to terms, Mr. Davis decided to continue the building project and run the Store himself. 

That first store was named "Skinny's" in tribute of Mrs. Davis' father, L.T. "Skinny" Tidwell.  L.T. and his brother Jack, who had opened the first convenience store in Abilene more than 45 years ago.

Through internal growth and acquisitions, Skinny's has grown to its current size of 102 stores and approximately 500 employees.  One of these acquisitions of note was the purchase of 8 Fatso’s stores in 1985.  A humorous event during these acquisitions occurred when the name change from Fatso’s to Skinny’s drew the attention of Mr. Paul Harvey and he mentioned it on his national radio program, "The Rest of the Story".

Skinny's is currently the largest operator of convenience stores headquartered in North Central Texas.  Skinny's stores are located in 28 cities as of September 1, 2005.  A typical Skinny's store has approximately 2,400 square feet of selling space and offers over 2,500 popular consumer items for sale.  Ninety-five percent of the Company's stores sell gasoline (as compared to a 75% industry average).  The Company is an independent gasoline retailer with 99 stores branded Fina, 2 stores branded Chevron and 1 unbranded store.

Skinny's operates all of its stores.  Management believes that operating its own stores offers a competitive advantage in its market as it provides management with more control over store operations and greater flexibility and speed in responding to changes in the convenience retailing market

Skinny’s believes strongly in being a good corporate citizen. In 1998 Skinny’s, Inc. was recognized as the corporate giver of the year by the Abilene Fund Raisers Association. Other sponsorships include local live stock shows, The Children’s Miracle Network, Toys for Tots, Meals on Wheels, Adopt A School and various activities at the local schools and universities.