Posted on 05/24/2007 5:48:44 AM PDT by kellynla
This has put the true problem into the open. When you start your car this morning, realize that your mobility depends not on BIG oil, BIG shipping, BIG refining, or BIG transportation. It depends on the willingness and ability of SMALL business to operate that gas station that keeps your car going. Any system that makes it more profitable to STOP selling a product will get just what it deserves..no product sold or available. The oil companys’ have profits much less than the tax revenue that accrues to the government(s), but the yelling is at the oil producers. Go ahead, yell at the local seller of gas, insult him, vilify the little guy, then swivel your neck looking for him when the gas pumps are SHUT OFF. You’ll have gasoline for only so long as someone is willing to sell it. This is how they make their living, it is not a hobby.
They can't negotiate lower credit card fees like the major chains do either.
Independents have a very difficult time making a living in low margin businesses.
He is better off not selling gas and making money fixing cars.
if I’m not mistaken, a guy in Wisconsin(?) tried that. he cut his prices by .03 per gallon for seniors and was ORDERED by shell to raise his price to 9.2% above wholesale, NO discounts available. I believe he also stopped selling gas..
Doesn’t matter if you pay your balance or not, they are still getting their 2-3% per transaction... You are at the end of the day paying a 2-3% premium anywhere you shop that takes credit cards, because they are passing that on to ALL their customers, cash or credit.
He wasn’t ordered by Shell, he was ordered by a state agency.
I stand corrected. the premise, however, stands. he was unable to provide a discount.
That is what I was going to say. Gas can be a “loss leader” to get people to come inside and buy some high-priced convenience goods.
Are they an oil company franchisee, or are they a convenience store chain? I’m pretty sure Shell doesn’t want Shell stations offering a reason for their customers not to use their Shell cards.
You don't pay your bill to MasterCard (or Visa)--you pay your bank. MC and Visa make their money via the per transaction fees the merchant pays.
BTW--I don't know about Visa, but MC is a non-profit company.
A Chevron station in Sunnyvale has started to do that. Last time I checked they were $3.44 and offering 9c/gallon discount for cash, which put them at $3.35, only 2c above the very lowest price (Arco) in the area. That's the only station I've seen though.
I believe they are Phillips 66. The only name I can remember off the top of my head right now is "U-Gas". But they are primarily a gas station.
Must be a lot of gas station owners violating their franchise agreements. I see 3-5 cent per gallon discounts for cash/diesel all the time. Wal-Mart also offers 3 cent per gallon discount if you use their card.
I noticed that at my local station, cigarette prices jumped recently, so their margins on fuel must really be getting squeezed. (unfortunately, they also switched from Marathon to Citgo, so I can’t buy my fuel there now anyway).
Supply isn't simply a function of how much crude is pumped from the ground.
Distributors intentionally keep their inventories lower coming into the Springtime...this has the desired effect as demand rises. Capitalism works.
If it’s 2-3% of the total amount, the banks or someone is getting more if the price of gas goes up. I know it costs all of us if an establishment takes credit cards, no matter if I use a card or not. My point about not feeling guilty is just about me. I hate carrying a balance or paying even one cent in fees. Everyone who does subsidizes me.
You’ll have gasoline for only so long as someone is willing to sell it. This is how they make their living, it is not a hobby.
&&&&&
Worth repeating. I use a local station that is a few cents more per gallon than the convenience store stations exactly because I want him to be there and operating on snow days, or when I need to have my tires checked, etc.
In my campaign to ‘force’ big media to tell us news we can use instead of propaganda, I want to know how many American refineries have suffered ‘accidents’ requiring unanticipated shutdowns in the past year. We are fed certain news items ad nauseam and other news items are totally ignored. I am suspicious of refinery accidents during this time of war. How many young mosque-going muslims work in refineries? My inquiring mind wants to know.
I also want to know how many Americans are aware that we have to import gasoline. We do not refine enough for our daily use. Talk about outsourcing! That is more serious than outsourcing the manufacturing of TVs or shoes.
Actually, it was the State of Wisconsin itself that ordered the guy to raise his prices, not Shell.
Well, I guess I stand corrected. Thankfully.
They get a flat rate on all gas sales, regardless if people don’t use their MC on a transaction and pay with cash? WTF?? Why would a station owner agree to that? You’d never see that kind of deal at a restaurant, clothing store or anywhere.
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