Traditional gasoline and c-store brands continue to sell the most gasoline, but consumers are increasing their tendency to fuel-up at grocers or warehouse retailers. A survey of 4,500 consumers, completed by Market Force Information, reports that Costco and Kroger are consumers’ favorite places to fill their gas tanks as of April 2012. The survey found…
Gulf Oil Grows In Ohio Through R&R Partnership
Gulf’s iconic orange disk logo begins to appear more throughout major cities in Ohio. Gulf Oil announced a new branded partnership agreement with R&R Takhar Oil Co. returning the motor fuel brand to major Ohio cities for the first time in two decades. R&R Takhar Oil Co., based in the greater-Dayton, Ohio area, plans to…
Car Wash Upgrades on Deck for 2012
Convenience store and petroleum retailers with car washes have faced a challenging 3-4 years in the car wash industry, and as a result have mostly refrained from new development of car wash sites. “We know from our equipment sales reports that there have been low levels of investment, particularly at petroleum c-store car wash sites,”…
Clark Brands Grows West
Marketer is expanding its footprint beyond legacy states as it signs on independent operators. By Erin Rigik, Associate Editor Clark Brands LLC is pursuing an aggressive growth strategy in 2012, expanding from the Dakotas to Texas, from New Mexico to Michigan and all points in between, as more fuel marketers elect to join the Clark…
Sale Closes On 30 New Mexico Stations
The former Chevron and Conoco-branded sites, once operated by Ever-Ready Oil, are acquired by two regional operators. In a deal valued at more than $15 million, San Diego-based Trigild Inc., in tandem with Dallas-based brokerage firm Annandale Real Estate, has closed the sale of a portfolio of 30 Albuquerque, N.M., area gas station/convenience stores once…
Is Big Oil Losing its Drawing Power?
For many, many years the power of the Big Oil brands was indisputable. They owned the refineries, the stations and the credit card networks to boot. While my father was an Exxon dealer and jobber for more than 30 years I distinctly remember seeing Shell and Texaco credit cards lying around the house. In those…
What’s On Your Customer’s C-Store Shopping List?
By: Jeff Weghorst, director of merchandising at dunnhumbyUSA One of the primary drivers behind a customer’s willingness to transact with a retailer is product selection. If a customer does not encounter an appealing assortment of products in-store, they are highly unlikely to engage even once with the retailer, and much less likely to become a…
Shells Launches New Shell Drive For Five Card
Shell Oil Products U.S., in partnership with its credit card issuer Citi, is launching a new Shell Drive for Five Card. The Shell Drive for Five Card will offer new cardholders the opportunity to save five cents per gallon on Shell-branded fuel. Shell believes the new card is one of the first proprietary cards with…
The 2010 Foodservice Report
Convenience store operators still not convinced foodservice is the future take heed. The National Restaurant Association (NRA) is predicting record-high sales of $580 billion in 2010. Furthermore, of the 70 different retail segments NRA tracks, the group identified convenience stores as the food industry’s “bright spot” when it comes to meeting consumer demand for fresh…
Acquisitions Fuel EZ Energy’s Growth
EZ Energy USA At a Glance Headquarters: Mansfield, Ohio Stores: 92 (68 company-operated and 24 dealer-operated sites) Total Estimated Sales: $480 million Markets of Operation: northeast and central Ohio, Pittsburgh Retail Brands: ampm, Easy Trip Fuel Brands: BP, Marathon Fuel Volume: 160 million gallons annually While many marketers are struggling to ride out this economic…