3 ms·
Huh, you're saying that gas station sell their main product at a loss and then make back the difference on what… tictacs and slim jims?
by kenneth 5y ago
Huh, you're saying that gas station sell their main product at a loss and then make back the difference on what… tictacs and slim jims?
- majewsky 5y agoActually yes. I don't recall it being a loss leader, but at the very least, gasoline has a very low margin because the gas price market is highly price-competitive. Store items have a much higher margin (as much is obvious just by looking at sticker prices). The average motorist will not purchase a lot from the store (as seen from your quip about "tictacs and slim jims"), but you also have truck drivers who are much more frequent customers of gas stations.
- pjerem 5y agoI don't know how it is in the US, but in France, yes, most gas stations are owned by adjacent stores and they make really little margins (actually, there are frequent sales of gasoline at cost price). In fact, when buying gasoline in those stations, it's common to receive some voucher for the owner's store. Other stations are owned by petrol corporations but they are in direct competition when they are near stores or they are very expensive when they are located on our highways, which are privatized(and it's a shame), so they are in some sort of closed market since you cannot leave the highway without paying.