Saturday, January 20, 2007 Oil firm urges retailers to establish stores at gas stations for co-branding
TO further strengthen its visibility in Cebu, a major oil refinery plans to anchor its existing and future gasoline stations on other consumer services.
Chevron Philippines Inc., formerly Caltex Philippines, is inviting business operators to put up retail outlets near Chevron gasoline stations as a form of “co-branding.”
“It’s a retailer-owned, retailer-operated site that can co-brand with allied services. It’s our way of sharing our customers,” said Roy Jimenez, Chevron Philippines for Visayas and Mindanao district manager for retail.
Jimenez told a press conference during the opening of Chevron’s north road branch in Labogon, Mandaue City last Thursday that the outlet is anchored with McDonald’s.
He said the Labogon branch is the first partnership of Chevron with a fastfood chain outside of Metro Manila.
Advantage
McDonald’s Cebu operations consultant Christian Eje earlier said most of the fastfood chain’s Manila branches are situated near gasoline stations.
Jimenez said the set up proves to be an advantage as a means for “cross promotion.”
“Maybe we can have a promotion where for every purchase of any McDonald’s item, they can get a free liter from us or vice versa,” he said.
According to Jimenez, Chevron does not limit the partnership to fastfood companies but has extended the offer to drugstores, restaurants, coffee shops, and banks.
“Upon leasing the business space from Chevron, potential partners are obligated to conform to the standards set by the company,” he said, adding this is a condition set by Chevron.
Jimenez said Chevron has the discretion to choose the business establishment they wish to co-brand with.
More branches
He also said Chevron plans to open three more branches in Cebu this year, two of which will be located on Mactan Island while the other would be in Danao City.
The company is also evaluating eight potential sites in Cebu province, Jimenez said.
He said that while the proposed Mactan and Danao branches are currently stand-alones, they are open to possible co-branding.
Mark Quebral, Chevron policy, government and public affairs manager, said the Chevron branch in Labogon Mandaue City is described to be the “first modern Caltex mega-station in Cebu” since it uses energy efficient lighting and an automatic tank gauging system.
Chevron Philippines has a 22 percent retail market share in the country with over 865 gasoline stations nationwide.
In the Visayas, it has 120 stations, 41 of which are found in Cebu. Sixty percent of its Cebu branches are company owned.
Twenty Chevron sites in the Philippines are co-branded stations. (MMM)
