Gulf Oil returns to Houston, branding 50 stations

by Simone Sebastian

The Gulf Oil logo is coming to Houston, as the fuel supplier launches plans to rebrand 50 gasoline stations in the area, according to executives.

Gulf Oil, a Massachusetts-based fuel wholesaler, has contracted to rebrand 50 ExxonMobil service stations beginning mid- May. Gulf Oil is partnering with Petroleum Wholesale LP, a distributor based in The Woodlands, to supply the stations.

The move is part of Gulf Oil’s aggressive move to expand the brand’s presence across the country, said Rick Dery, senior vice president of sales and marketing.

The company’s logo had been absent from Texas for decades, but returned to the state last year when it branded five stations in Austin. The company was launched in 1901 in Beaumont.

“We are very excited about the re-emergence in the Houston market,” Dery said. “We are going to come back in a much more significant way. The excitement here is bursting.”

The company stores and  distributes branded fuels. It currently supplies 3,000 Gulf Oil and other stations, Dery said.

The Gulf Oil-Petroleum Wholesale partnership plans to brand at least 15 new fueling stations each year for the next decade, Dery said.

Gulf Oil is a  fuel retailer and distributor, without refining operations. The company is expanding its presence at a time when retailers with refineries  are struggling against stagnant fuel demand and competitive pressure.

“Margins have been tight with $4 gasoline and retail customers are becoming hyper sensitive to price,” Dery said. “It’ll get challenging for retail operators, the publicity for our industry isn’t the best.”

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• Gulf Oil History (mb50.wordpress.com)

Gulf Oil History

1909-1919  When the company that was to be known as Gulf was born in 1901 with an oil discovery in Spindletop, Texas, the primary commercial fuel was coal. By 1903, the age of mechanization had arrived and it was now up to the petroleum industry to keep pace, for the age could not proceed without it. Gasoline development, into which Gulf invested millions of dollars, responded to advances in automotive technology to make the modern motorcar possible. Within a dozen years of Spindletop, Gulf scored notable firsts with the world’s first drive-in service station, complimentary Gulf road maps and over water drilling at Ferry Lake. In 1917, the Gulfstream went into World War I service, along with the rest of Gulf’s tanker fleet.

1920-1949  Gulfpride – the World’s Finest Motor Oil was manufactured and first marketed in 1928 and by the early Thirties, Gulf was a major U.S. corporation. In 1949, William Larimer Mellon, a founder and active head of Gulf for 45 years, died at 80, just 17 months after his retirement, as the company moved into eighth place among the largest manufacturing concerns in the United States

1950-1974  As Gulf entered its second half-century, the needs became more diverse and technologically ever more sophisticated. By 1960, it was clear that Gulf’s growth rate during the 1950s had been twice that of the United States as an economic entity. During the 1960s, Gulf mounted vigorous exploration, production and marketing programs including several new refineries, petrochemical and polyethylene plants, the construction of six mammoth tankers, a joint development with the Holiday Inns of America and the redesign of the Orange Disc to make it more clearly identifiable.

1975-1985  In 1975, Gulf was restructured into seven separate operating companies. By year’s end, the Company evaluated 48 of 82 Gulf of Mexico tracts acquired since 1972, resulting in seven major discoveries and nine less significant discoveries. Gulf ended its 75th year facing new patterns of relationships abroad, and prepared to devote increased attention to interests in the U.S. and Canada.

1986-2009   In 1986 Cumberland Farms acquired the naming rights to the Gulf Oil brand from Chevron to be used in eleven northeast states.  But it wasn’t until 1993 that Gulf Oil Limited Partnership was formed after Cumberland Farms entered a joint venture with Catamount Petroleum LP.  In 2005, Cumberland acquired the company in full and brought in CEO Joe Petrowski, who charged the company with “reinventing” the brand.  Since then, a renewed commitment to the Gulf brand has been established with the introduction of new minimum standards and image requirements.

January 12, 2010 – Present  On January 12, 2010, Gulf Oil acquired all rights, title and interest to the “Gulf” brand in the U.S.  This acquisition enabled Gulf to expand its use of the Gulf brand throughout the U.S. for the first time since it acquired certain rights to the brand in 1986.  Under the leadership of Gulf Oil President and Chief Operating Officer Ron Sabia and Gulf Oil Senior Vice President and Chief Sales and Marketing Officer Rick Dery, thousands of service stations proudly fly the Gulf flag, carrying on the tradition of a quality product line and friendly service. Gulf Oil Limited Partnership, now based in Framingham, Massachusetts is a wholesaler of refined petroleum products. Gulf distributes motor fuels through a network of more than 2,000 Gulf branded gas stations and service stations, as well as heating oil, diesel fuel and kerosene.

Gulf Oil History.