20 Dec 2021

Taking The Fuel Business To Greater Heights Alongside Branded NFRs

As business owners, it’s always important to stay on top of market trends and keep a lookout for opportunities to expand the business. Now more than ever, Retail Partners need to optimise their resources and find better ways of promoting their stations to keep up in a challenging business environment. While there are many ways to achieve this, partnering with the right branded non-fuel retail (NFR) convenience stores can make all the difference in growing your Caltex station.

Here are three main benefits of having a branded NFR store at your station:

1. Free up resources so that Retail Partners can focus on growing the fuel business

   • Retail Partners do not have to worry about the daily operations of the convenience store, such as inventory management, payment to various suppliers and delivery logistics – all these are taken care of by the NFR partner
   • NFRs are also able to apply their expertise and analytics to determine what products are best for a store in a particular location

2. Save time and money

   • Retail Partners do not need to spend too much additional time and money to promote their stations as branded NFRs tend to draw in higher foot traffic due to their popularity – this helps to naturally increase a station’s visibility among the community
   • The sheer size of many branded NFRs also allow them to negotiate with suppliers for the best prices, thus saving costs for Retail Partners

3. Ensure consistent customer experience

   • NFR stores will have a larger range of products and services which are of a certain level of quality
   • Staff are also trained in the proper NFR store standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines even though they are hired by the Retail Partner

Siva A/L Subramaniam, who owns Caltex Sungai Buaya (SK Setia Enterprise), shared his journey of having a 7-Eleven store at his station. Seeing the opportunity in the area, 7-Eleven had initially rented the location from Mr. Siva. After about three years, a franchise opportunity arose and Mr Siva decided to take it and has now been running the 7-Eleven as a franchise owner for over a year. He also has a Marrybrown store at his station.

Dato’ Chong Tam On says that in addition to the benefits listed above, he is also able to get steady rental income from the various NFR stores at his station, Caltex Lebuh SPA (Blue Ocean Central Sdn Bhd). There are four stores at the station located in Taman Paya Emas, Melaka: Family Mart, Watsons, 1021 Bubble Milk Tea and Richiamo Coffee.

Mr Siva and Dato’ Chong also shared the key criteria they looked for when deciding which NFR convenience store to partner with

1. NFR brand reputation
2. Range of products and services
3. Ease of setting up store
4. Total investment capital

As for advice for other station owners who are considering a branded NFR store on their premises, Mr Siva said to first determine if the convenience store offers a franchise opportunity – especially if you think you might want to take it on later. “The combined staffing from both the station and c-store allows better management of human resources and increased productivity. This is important as Caltex Sungai Buaya is a 24-hour station and that will continue when lockdowns are fully lifted.”

Dato’ Chong added: “Despite the fact that in terms of monetary benefits, the rental income of branded convenience stores might be less than the sales of self-managed businesses, I still recommend creating a branded convenience store because it will help to attract customers in the long run.”

For more information and updates on the various NFR opportunities available for Retail Partners, please check with your respective Branded Marketers and Retail Business Consultants (RBCs).