Posted by OR on 4/21/07 5:17pm
Msg #186277
OT Gas Wars
GAS WARS
This was originally sent by a retired Coca Cola executive. It came from
one of his engineer buddies who retired from Halliburton It's worth your
consideration.
Join the resistance!!!! I hear we are going to hit close to $4.00 a
gallon by next summer and it might go higher!! Want gasoline prices to
come down?
We need to take some intelligent, united action. Phillip Hollsworth
offered this good idea.
This makes MUCH MORE SENSE than the "don't buy gas on a certain day"
campaign that was going around last April or May! The oil companies just
laughed at that because they knew we wouldn't continue to "hurt"
ourselves by refusing to buy gas. It was more of an inconvenience to us
than it was a problem for them.
BUT, whoever thought of this idea, has come up with a plan that can
really work. Please read on and join with us! By now you're probably
thinking gasoline priced at about $1.50 is super cheap. Me too! It is
currently $2.79 for regular unleaded in my town. Now that the oil
companies and the OPEC nations have conditioned us to think that the
cost of a gallon of gas is CHEAP at $1.50 - $1.75, we need to take
aggressive action to teach them that BUYERS control the marketplace....
not sellers. With the price of gasoline going up more each day, we
consumers need to take action. The only way we are going to see the
price of gas come down is if we hit someone in the pocketbook by not
purchasing their gas! And, we can do that WITHOUT hurting ourselves.
How?
Since we all rely on our cars, we can't just stop buying gas. But we CAN
have an impact on gas prices if we all act together to force a price
war.
Here's the idea:
For the rest of this year, DON'T purchase ANY gasoline from the two
biggest companies (which now are one), EXXON and MOBILE . If they are
not selling any gas, they will be inclined to reduce their prices. If
they reduce their prices, the other companies will have to follow suit.
But to have an impact, we need to reach literally millions of Exxon and
Mobile gas buyers. (Why those 2?) It's really simple to do! Now, don't
wimp out at this point.... keep reading and I'll explain how simple it
is to reach millions of people.
I am sending this note to 30 people. If each of us sends it to at least
ten more (30 x 10 =3D3D 300) ... and those 300 send it to at least ten
more (300 x 10 =3D3D 3,00 0)...and so on, by the time the message =
reaches
the sixth group of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION
consumers. If those three million get excited and pass this on to ten
friends each, then 30 million people will have been contacted! If it
goes one level further, you guessed it.... THREE HUNDRED MILLION
PEOPLE!!!
Again, all you have to do is send this to 10 people. That's all. (If you
don't understand how we can reach 300 million and all you have to do is
send this to 10 people.... Well, let's face it, you just aren't a
mathematician.
But I am, so trust me on this one.)
How long would all that take? If each of us sends this e-mail out to ten
more people within one day of receipt, all 300 MILLION people could
conceivably be contacted within the next 8 days!!!
I'll bet you didn't think you and I had that much potential, did you?
Acting together we can make a difference. If this makes sense to you,
please pass this message on. I suggest that we not buy from EXXON/MOBILE
UNTIL THEY LOWER THEIR PRICES TO THE $1.30 RANGE AND KEEP THEM DOWN.
THIS CAN REALLY WORK !
May I suggest BP, they sell 100% British oil from the north sea, not one
drop of middle east oil.
| Reply by marlindog on 4/21/07 5:32pm
Msg #186279
Re: OT Gas Wars....... Thats an awsome Idea n/m
| Reply by Larry/Ca on 4/21/07 5:40pm
Msg #186281
This strategy presumes that...
the world oil supply, which many would say drives the market price of gas, would remain constant without the Exxon/Mobile production.
| Reply by Charles_Ca on 4/21/07 6:07pm
Msg #186282
The dirty little secret is that they buy and sell
each others bulk products. The gas you think is Shell could very well be BP or Exxon or Mobil or any of a dozen refiners, so go buy your gas from the others and they'll buy their gas from Exxon and Mobil when their allotment runs low or their refining capacity is overwhelmed. By the way owning a gas station is one of the better investments one can make, and is is very much a cash business still and you knwo what that means. If you really want to hedge the oil prices buy a gas station.
| Reply by PAW on 4/21/07 7:57pm
Msg #186291
Same as last year ... See SNOPES
http://www.snopes.com/politics/gasoline/gasout.asp
As the article says:
A boycott of a couple of brands of gasoline won't result in lower overall prices. Prices at all the non-boycotted outlets would rise due to the temporarily limited supply and increased demand, making the original prices look cheap by comparison. The shunned outlets could then make a killing by offering gasoline at its "normal" (i.e., pre-boycott) price or by selling off their output to the non-boycotted companies, who will need the extra supply to meet demand. The only person who really gets hurt in this proposed scheme is the service station operator, who has almost no control over the price of gasoline.
The only practical way of reducing gasoline prices is through the straightforward means of buying less gasoline, not through a simple and painless scheme of just shifting where we buy it. The inconvenience of driving less is a hardship too many people apparently aren't willing to endure, however.
| Reply by Charles_Ca on 4/21/07 8:13pm
Msg #186294
Re: Same as last year ... See SNOPES ~ Good points Paul,
I've just started to use my bicycle a lot more and the benefits are two-fold, reduced gas prices and increased health benefits. I used to only use my bike for exercise and recreation now I use it to go shopping, replace the car on short trips, and even to the office on those days I won't need the car.
| Reply by ZeeCA on 4/21/07 9:35pm
Msg #186310
also, any excuse to raise prices... JMO n/m
| Reply by LJ on 4/21/07 11:31pm
Msg #186328
Re: also, any excuse to raise prices... JMO
Its simple: Supply and demand. The more demand for gas, the higher the price and vice versa. If everyone would just stop driving as much, it would come down. Your 8oz bottle of water you buy at the store for 99cents costs over $14 a gallon. Think about it. We're very, very spoiled. It kills me to see people drive around and around for 10 minutes looking for a closer place to park then complain about the price of gas.
And Charles, the fastest way to go broke is to buy a gas station. Take it from me. Just sold 6 of them to keep from losing the shirt off our back. Finally got out after 53 years in the family business and everything we had was paid for. Spent a 1/4 million dollars on updating 1 of the stations and in 5 years still owed 1/4 million. Never could pay down the principle on the loan. Talk about stress. It about ruined us big time.
| Reply by Susan Fischer on 4/22/07 12:11am
Msg #186331
"53 years in the family business and everything we had was
paid for." Man, that's a sad, sad story. What's wrong with that picture? The Service Station...gone.
Now, it's all Corporate. Same with farms.
Had to laugh out loud at a guy filling up his Hummer [strange, saying that] yesterday ~crying~ about the price of the low test...
Anyway, LJ, hope you and yours are going to do ok.
Cheers,
Susie
| Reply by Charles_Ca on 4/22/07 1:16am
Msg #186344
LJ I am very sorry to hear of your family's loss, however as
with all real estate its all about location, location, location and in my area where I specialize in commercial properties I handle a few gas station sales and purchases and loans and their financials are fine and I know that if you check the Benchmark financials in the RMA books you will see that gas stations are a good business. If your financials don't check out one needs to see why because there are usually reasons: did you participate in the family business? Personally, I wouldn't have the gift of one! However if one person's experience is poor it doesn't mean that one should paint a whole industry with the same paint brush, its all in the financials!
| Reply by Lisa Prestegard on 4/22/07 8:19am
Msg #186353
I'd be interested to see their profit margin on the gas
alone. I have a friend that recently sold his VERY busy gas station, which included prime real estate. He told me that the gasoline was merely a tool to get people in the door... that every cent he earned on the gas was spend on equipment maint., upgrades, pump calibration, tank permits, etc. What remained in the way of profit from the gasoline quickly disappeared due to the occassional 'drive off'. He would have been in the red had it not been for beer, cigs, soda, coffee and other convenience store items.
IMO, gas station owners aren't getting rich due to recent price increases. BTW, it's $3.03 per gallon in Naples for mid-grade.
| Reply by John_NorCal on 4/22/07 9:05am
Msg #186358
Re: I'd be interested to see their profit margin on the gas
I have to agree with you Lisa. Way back when (1969), I drove a tanker truck for Standard Oil of Calif. before each delivery I had to check to see what the rental rate was for that particular station. That rate was reflected in the price per gallon, at that time the rate was anywhere from 02 to 04 cents per gallon. Most stations back then used the gasoline sales to get people in the door for the mechanical work. Then the oil companies wanted to squash that because they wanted a piece of the labor sales. It wasn't enough for them to sell tires, batteries and accessories (TBA) to the station owner. They then began to change their lease terms to prohibit mechanical work and they started to promote sales of groceries, etc. When all the numbers were factored in, the station owner was only making 01 to 03 per gallon. I bet we can agree that things having only gotten more favorable to the oil companies.
| Reply by Susan Fischer on 4/22/07 10:18am
Msg #186366
$3.35 yesterday, up OVER 20 cents in as many weeks here. n/m
| Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/22/07 8:13pm
Msg #186439
I saw $3.45 yesterday on my way home.
Charles is right that it's location, location, location. Gas in other parts of my county can be $.20 - $.25/gal less on the same day, same brand. Even Costco prices vary by $.10 - $.15/gal within 25 mi radius. It comes down to what the market will bear.
In California, the refiners have figured out that they can make more money by producing less gas because the reduced supply makes prices rise. The only way we can have an impact on prices is to reduce consumption, whether that means driving less by better planning or by driving cars that are more fuel efficient. Over the last few decades our per capita consumption has significantly increased. 30 or 40 years ago, kids walked to school. 10 or 15 years ago, most cars on the roads were sudans. Now it seems that nearly 2/3 are SUVs - most with one person in them...!
What's that old quote??? "I have met the enemy and it is us!" (Something like that...)
| Reply by marlindog on 4/22/07 9:50am
Msg #186364
I owned a station in a very busy part of brooklyn and.......
if it was not for the AAA contract and repairs I would not have made any money.The fact is you only make pennies on a gallon and have to sell millions of gallons to make moneythe only thing that the gas did was pay the rent and utilities and the station sold a million gallons a year and it was one f the two top brands
| Reply by Charles_Ca on 4/22/07 11:08am
Msg #186381
So, tell me guys, since it appears that I have a
sphincter around my neck why do gas stations continue to exist, nay people even wait to be able to purchase one investing time and capital to make such a measly pittance. There are even some who refinance their lousy investments to make improvemendts. I don't understand it and I don't sell business opportunities they are too much of a PITA. It must be like notaries who throw money at the NNA to get a job that they virtualy have to support. Is it just the pride of weaing the XXX Oil uniform, or being part of the giant corporate cabal ?
| Reply by BrendaTx on 4/22/07 11:26am
Msg #186384
Re: So, tell me guys, since it appears that I have a
I am also interested in understanding the model of the gas / convenience store. Can enough high priced conveniently fast groceries really bring enough profit to make this worthwhile? Gas pumps are always doing one to five vehicles at only a few cents a gallon?
These places are located in high value corners of real estate/high investment, I see the owners shopping for cigs (mark up 50 cents) at Sam's, and I see beer/cigs more than anything going out of the store at 5 pm. Is there really enough of this sold while the welding rigs gas up at a profit of only a few dollars a stop to make it profitable?
| Reply by Lisa Prestegard on 4/23/07 12:49am
Msg #186459
Re: So, tell me guys, since it appears that I have a
The answer to your first question is "yes", Brenda. People need (not want) the gasoline, so it is provided solely as a means to get us in the door. Believe me when I say that station owners are counting on you needing bread, milk, soda, cigs or beer without having to make another stop at the supermarket on the way home.
They're praying you bring the kids in to use their "clean restroom" so the little buggers will scream bloody murder for that pack of gum, candy bar or worthless, overpriced toy sitting ever-so-conveniently at kids-eye-level.
And there's a reason each and every employee is trained like a robot to inquire as to whether you would like a car wash today. (BIG money in car washes!)
One of the highest profit margins for these gas/convenience stores is the fountain soda and coffee they sell. Notice the 'high end' coffee bars in these stores lately? Look at the amount of square footage dedicated to selling these types of beverages. Unbelievable.
There's the REAL 'liquid gold', and it isn't the gas. 
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