“How to Start a Gas Station?”
Comment Page 2

@george, A gas station in Texas, US can cost you at least 100,000 USD and the upper limit can be anything. An average C-store and the gas station will cost you around $3/400,000. Things to consider will be location, other restaurant franchises like subway, ice cream parlor, car wash, etc.. All these can add to your investment and it can go up to 1 Million or more..

@mudzrafaea: at the outset, it bears stressing that in any business endeavor, one has to inject a substantial amount of capital in order to gain a competitive foothold. in your case, you will really have to start securing your premises to ensure that no property dispute shall haunt you in the future.... you may buy the 1/2 portion from your family member (relative) with staggered payment scheme if he/she approves of it. otherwise, you may apply the same through loan financing with a bank... the downside though is that bank would charge you hefty interest... so, the best thing is to buy the 1/2 with a one (1) year payment scheme by dividing the full purchase price into 12 monthly installment basis. since a filling station is already identified in the area, it is best to pursue such line of business... people would readily recognize your brand as there was already a trailblazer. any and all other business features you interject, the likes of A.T.M., service station, mini-mart and others would give your business activity a diversification that is geared to maximise the position of your business in relations to the development of the area as residential and/or commercial junction. it is not uncommon knowledge that your gains in fuel sales would be peged at cents per litter as it is a supply-demand circumstance. the important thing is that you could protect your inventory and optimise control and security of your assets. good luck, johnsarciasalvadora@yahoo.com

@Kennedy Shamakamba. the bank will only entertain you if you could provide them with an impressive business plan. so you need to have one. But first you need to decide on whether you would want to have your very own service/filling station which carries your own logo or would you want to enter into franchise/dealership with branded companies the likes of Shell, Chevron or BP. Either way, you need to register your business name, example: Shamakamba Fuels. then you can submit proposal or apply for dealership/franchise with the companies that you wish to operate with. Otherwise, you can have your very own company and scout for fuel suppliers who could give you the best deal. Having established your business plan, you now can go to the bank to apply for a credit facility or loans with which to get you going. you would have your business assets as collateral. im sure than bank would make you execute loan agreement and require you to submit pertinent personal and business papers the likes of birth certificate, identification cards, business registration, business permit and others. good luck.

Solaman. I'm sorry but i cannot exactly help you on the COST issue as i am not from UK. I'm from Philippines. A good basic thing you could do is to pay a visit to the nearest service station near your home and engage the manager or owner in a cordial business interview. relay to him/her your interest and he/she may give you pertinent financial details. Good luck.

ZAMO (zmahlanze@yahoo.com) Dear Zamo, Hello there. I learned that Kwazulu Natal is South Africa's garden province. Sounds interesting. Well, about the filling station (we call it service station in the Philippines) which you plan to put up. First things first, do you plan to franchise a branded product the likes of Shell, Chevron (Caltex), BP or others? Or you would want to put up your own generic station? IF BRANDED: You would need to enter into a Franchise Agreement or Dealership Contract with whatever brand/company that is existing/operating in South Africa. Do you have Shell, Chevron or BP there? But before they entertain you, you must put up and register you business name, example: ZAMO FUEL ENTERPRISE. You have to register your business with the business registration department of your district/hometown. This is because multinational corporations the likes of Shell, Chevron or BP only enters into contract with legitimate business entity, either as sole proprietorship or corporation. In your case, you are a sole proprietorship business. The thing with being a franchisee, you will be required to have your own parcel of land where to build your filling station which shall be constructed under compliance with their brand image and design. You would also be required to put up a bond for the fuels which shall be supplied to you. Your earnings would be per cents litter, so you cannot expect to earn so much. Hence, you have to diversify your services by having a food court, convenience store, repair service and other commercial undertaking like selling of clothes, shoes, cellphone or other stuffs but be sure that you have a separate section for this in your station. So plan your construction well. Be very careful with your design and how you would construct in your land. Part of your franchise fee to the company will cover the underground fuel tanks, fuel dispensers, pos machines and other equipment. The products you would sell in the convenience store and food court would be yours alone. So you have to find for suppliers. IF GENERIC (NOT BRANDED/YOUR OWN RESELLER): You would need still to register a business name like ZAMO SERVICE STATION with the business registration department of your local government of your hometown or province. You can use your own design in constructing the service/filling station using your own color/paint and logo. Usually, service/filing stations should use attractive colors like yellow, red, orange, blue or green. You will need to find and buy your own underground fuel tanks, fuel dispensers, pos and other equipment like computer and other pertinent technology on your own. I suggest that you scout for them in South Africa through dealers. I know that China-made fuel underground storage tanks and dispensers are cheaper. Find out if there are any of them in your area. Otherwise, you will have to put up with whatever you find in South Africa or nearby countries. As to the convenience store, food court and department store where you can sell clothes and other items, you may search for suppliers within South Africa or from other countries, depending on your choice. In all these, you need substantial amount of capital with which to start up. Your local bank can help you with your finances through loans, but be aware of hefty interest and penalty charges. I suggest that you invite your family and trusted friends to invest with you so that you can have a pool of investors. In all your business undertakings, be always mindful of the way you spend your money. Be thrifty and economical in your expenses. Be practical with your assets. Good luck. Truly yours, John S. Salvadora, Manila, Philippines johnsarciasalvadora@yahoo.com

@Elly Towo, Send me the pertinent information like, the specific location (address) where you are going to put up the business; the available capital that you have (if any) that would be supplemented by the bank; the available materials/equipment that you have (if any).Send me also the name and address of the bank. You can send it to my e-mail address: johnsarciasalvadora@yahoo.com, i will help you draft the business plan for the bank loan process. John

Hi there, Muhammad. im not familiar with the business registration protocol of toronto, canada, as i am from the philippines. but it is a universal legal compliance that before you set up any business outfit, you have to secure yourself with a strategic location for your business. in your case, i suggest that you seek somewhere volume of vehicles passes daily. make sure that the same is not adjacent to residential houses for safety and security reasons. Having done that, you need to go to the business registration department of your local government to secure pertinent documentations. you would need to pay for it, i'm sure. you will have to register a business name for your station. otherwise, you can patch up with a establish fuel business for franchising. this can be ironed by their business development officer and/or operations officer. you will need substantial capital for the franchise fees. not to mention the costs of underground tanks, fuel pumps/dispensers, computer and point of sale cash register, among others. The legal preliminary also includes environmental compliance. so the city environment department would conduct inspection and other pertinent preliminaries before you would be given a license to operate.

@naim, it is tough but with little research your business can be profitable. If you know a place that is going to be popular in a year or two then plan about starting a gas station there. Similar thoughts can really earn you more money.

@Lulama, you can prepare a business plan to approach investors, lending companies. You can also seek help from friends and relatives but the amount will be very limited from these resources.

Rohan, thanx a lot... good luck on all your endeavors.

Rohan, i'm also working as Documentation Specialist/Consultant with CCI, one of the marketing arm of Chevron Philippines that market Caltex brand. i wrote their company handbook and HESS (Health, Environment, Safety and Security) Culture.

@Timar. you're more than welcome. i am more than pleased to share my ideas, no matter how small, to those people i have common interest. good luck on all your endeavors. make it happen. believe in your self. all the luck, john

@Rishabh. If you have substantial amount of money and you want to have a commanding "customer recall" i suggest that you go into franchising. big companies the likes of Chevron, BP or Shell would provide you with marketing strategy with which to undertake the business. plus, they shall supervise the construction of the station, installation of underground storage tanks, pos and other pertinent equipment that are incidental to your business. you are also more assured of a steady supply of fuel, depending on your credit limit or bond. Franchising is almost always advisable to startups. However, in due time that you get to establish your self and somehow master the ins and outs of fuel retailing service, you may terminate the franchise agreement and go on with your own. you may now have your own brand/business name and outsource for fuel supplies elsewhere who may offer bigger returns.

Guys in South Africa who would like to set up fuel service station or needed technical expertise, contact Mr. Rohan Kidson at Progresus Project & Safety Management. he has already spent years in Chevron (that markets the Caltex brand). i can assure you that this guy is one of the best in the fuel service business. i can assure you that anybody who have worked for Chevron can deliver a good job. i know... i worked for a marketing firm that operates five (5) Chevron (Caltex) station here in the Philippines. they're darn professionals. they're the marines of fuel industry. good luck guys. bring it on...