Awash In Profits, Exxon Extracting Every Penny From Its Franchisees

Washington Post:

Every time Sohaila Rezazadeh rings up a sale at her Exxon station on Chain Bridge Road in Oakton, her cash register sends the information to Exxon Mobil's central computers. If she raises the price of gasoline a couple of pennies, chances are that Exxon will raise the wholesale price she pays by the same amount.

Through a password-protected Web portal, Exxon notifies Rezazadeh of wholesale price changes daily. That way the oil giant, which is earning about $3.3 billion a month, fine-tunes the pump prices at the franchise Rezazadeh has owned for 12 years.

Now, however, Rezazadeh says she cannot stay in business. Credit-card fees are eating her profit margins. Exxon, which owns the station land, last week handed Rezazadeh a new lease raising her rent about 30 percent over the next three years. She stuck a copy on the window of her station to show customers who are angry about soaring pump prices. Rezazadeh has told Exxon that she cannot make money with the rent that high. Her territory manager's reply, she said, was simple: When you go, leave us the keys.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[drkazmd65]

I've typed it here before,...­. I type it here again,....

Who will be first against the wall when the Revolution does come?

[ErnestineBass]

My vote goes to "Bush's Brain", Karl Rove.

Had it not been for his machinations, we might have been spared eight years of ruin.

[drkazmd65]

Rove would most certainly be on my list of 'candidates' EB,... but the board of directors of the Carlyle Group,.. the putzes that run Blackwater, Halliburton, and the like, and the complete sh*theads that run the big media that USED to be the voice of truth and the people would be just as high on my list.

Georgie, Dick, and Rove rank up there though in my book.

[Wilburrr]

Boycotting gas stations on any given day doesn't work; we still use the same amount of gasoline. What would work is a national movement to use public transportation. The Valley Metro buses in Phoenix drive around empty, yet they can take you anywhere you really want to go. Even one day a week would reduce your commuting gas demand by 20%... Carpool with another person 2 days a week for the same result.

[Wiredwilly]

Correct. Forget boycotting on a given day, We need to boycott a SPECIFIC COMPANY until they go down to s specific price. Boycott Exxon-Mobile / BP - Amoco Target $ 2.50 a gallon for Premium.

[apexfork]

Yes, I'm sure they'll get right on that. You do know that crude oil, on the open market, is over $2.50 per gallon?

So why on earth would they sell you gas below cost? Because you "feel" that you should pay less? You should probably walk to an econ class.

[wmbear]

I'M LOOKING FORWARD...

To the company I work for moving within bicycling distance of where I live. On all good weather days, I'm planning on getting my exercise and getting to an from work on zero gallons of gas....

[RGKahn]

It looks like Exxon is not only screwing Alaska they are screwing their own franchisees as well. Exxon has made more net profit then any other corporation in the history of the world. They, Exxon, has yet to pay one cent in fines that were levied against them for the Exxon Valdees grounding 15 (I think) years ago. They are waiting for those who were supposed to be compensated for the damage Exxon did when their ship was driven aground by a non-qualified third mate at the helm, to die off so that there will be less and less plaintiffs left to pay.

It seems that there are only so many stations available to franchise and that there is a long list to get one, so that they could care less if a few stations are not viable. Its the franchisees problem, not theirs. Not a big surprise there.

[nanotubz]

But greed is good. Ken Lay's problem in the shrubs eyes, was being caught being very good.

[twitch1956]

RGKahn hs got this right. THe Exxon Valdez ran aground in 1989. They haven't paid a dime to compensate the Alaskan people. Over thirty percent of the original plaintiffs who were awarded a share of the settlelment have since died and Exxon keeps appealing the ruling waiting for the more to die off.

[RTIII]

So, she doesn't "own" _anything,_ now, does she? -frown-

[lisakaz2]

Of course, Exxon cares about its franchise operators about as much as customers, which is non existant. How glad I am I have not frequented an Exxon in at least a decade, more if you don't count Mobil.

[UncleJimbo]

Everyone is being SKREWED by the Oil Companies and were not even being kissed!

[ErnestineBass]

Not unless our lips pressed on their arses counts...h­eh heh