Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
#1Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/12/08 at 8:17pm
I would LOVE to see their balance sheet. If $4.00/gallon doesn't turn a profit then where is all the money going?
They say they can't compete with the Walmarts etc.
Maybe that's b/c instead of staying competitive they priced themselves out of the market.
Link
#2re: Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/12/08 at 8:19pm
Actually, the actual stations do not make more money depending on the price of gas. They usually get the same spread regardless of price.
Many gas station owners are struggling with increase costs and not being able to increase the margins on the gas they sell.
#2re: Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/12/08 at 8:29pmInteresting. I wonder why they don't do anything about it.
#3re: Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/12/08 at 8:35pm
An article I read indicated that if they increase the price to change the spread, that the spread is then closed by the oil distributor.
That is why so many have added food service and other features to make money.
This article doesn't discuss the spread, but does give you an idea of the situation.
Struggling Gas Station Owners
Yawper
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/13/04
#4re: Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/12/08 at 11:55pm
Where I live most of the majors sold off their stations a few years ago, mostly to their local jobbers who now lease or sell them to the dealers.
One of the major advantages of dumping the stations now is getting out from under the hassle and liability of contamination from the underground storage tanks while standards and enforcement are still relatively low.
There are quite a few stations here now sitting empty, with the tanks still in place, because the dealers went under once they had to go it on their own.
A few years ago the city of Detroit placed a moratorium on new gas station builds. If you want to open a station in the city you have to rehab an existing one.
LePetiteFromage
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/19/08
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#6re: Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/13/08 at 12:55amI posted on this in the cash vs credit price thread- the markup on gas is usually 2 to 10 cents a gallon. So if you buy $20 worth (5 gallons) the station makes 50 cents top. The manager at my gas station told me that he makes much much more profit from the convenience store than he does selling gas- and with prices this high, people are skipping that diet coke and cupcake for the road. He's hurting!
#7exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/13/08 at 6:54amclearly we should be taxing these gas station owners at a higher rate. punish them and the prices will come down.
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#8exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/13/08 at 7:28am
I wish the stations could come up with a way to exploit their symbiotic relationship with the oil companies.
keen on kean
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/1/06
#9exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable
Posted: 6/13/08 at 9:20amAs I understand it, the station owner has to pay for the fuel that's delivered so he/she has to have the money available when the tanker truck pulls up to the station. With credit being tight, some owners are having trouble borrowing the money to pay for their deliveries. They may make the profit when the gas is sold, but they have much higher upfront costs than they used to. So it is possible that they aren't profitable (hard as that is to believe here in CT where the price for self-serve premium is $5.05).
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