Retiring Diamond Shamrock

[scott]

http://www.prnewswire.com/broadcast/22198/consumer.shtml

[NameDropper]

Damn, you must've been listening to the radio too.

Rumor has it this was coming.

[BadlyDrawnBoy]

I heard about this.

Didn't they spend a ton over the years to renovate the Stop 'n Go brand into the Diamond Shamrock Corner Store brand.

Now they're getting rid of the Diamond?

Man, that sucks. Now I won't be able to say, "I'm going to Diamond Shamrock." I'll have to say, "I'm going to Valero."

It doesn't sound right.

[scott]

I would think someone like you would be excited about this, Buddy. It gains national recognition for San Antonio's premier company and employer. After the pending Premcor acquisition, Valero is poised to be #15 on the Fortune 500 - but who in America really knows what Valero does? Having Valero stations (in places where there was other brands before) puts an image to the name. Most people didn't know that Diamond Shamrock was a Valero Brand. In some way, this would be a positive thing for the city of San Antonio.

The Stop n' Go brand conversion was pre-Valero, IIRC. What's lost is the time/effort/money converting from "Diamond Shamrock" to "DS Corner Stores".

Along with the reason I mentioned, this is a way of upgrading Valero's retail business as well. Where Valero stations are already in existence, they are considered a Premium brand (like Shell) whereas Diamond Shamrock is not. Valero still has other brands, but obviously the Valero store will be the flagship retail presence.

[scott]

and oh yeah... there are studies that suggest downstream oil companies (like Valero) earn a higher P/E multiple by having a National Brand. And this also saves on advertising costs, now you only need to advertise 1 brand nationally, instead of different brands regionally.

[BadlyDrawnBoy]

Oh no Scott, I agree.

It's a great step forward for Valero overall.

But personally, I'll miss the name Diamond Shamrock, not to mention the green, white, and red colors. I'm not feeling the "Valero" colors.

The reason i mentioned Stop 'N Go, is because up until maybe a yearago, the Diamond Shamrock by my parents house was a Diamond Shamrock but still had the Stop 'N Go words on the actual building.

My mistake.

Again, great step forward for San Antonio based Valero.

[BadlyDrawnBoy]

Goodbye old friend.

http://www.monitorinc.com/products/canopy/canopy3tab.JPG

I'll spill one for you with the brothers.

[scott]

One thing to remember that in the retail gasoline business, independent station owners can buy or lease imaging rights. The Stop N' Go by your house probably wasn't a company owned station, but an independent franchisee.

[BadlyDrawnBoy]

Also, I read that a lot of small Diamond or Beacon stores are staying put and not rebranding.

[ObiwanGinobili]

damn it.
will this world slow down???

I like the diamond shamrock name and the logo. Infact I use diamond shamrock for like 70% of my cornerstore/gas needs.
Dag nab it.

"valero" just doen't feel as comfortable on my palate.

[Das Texan]

I was wondering why this has taken so long...


especially when there are valero stations in California and have been for years. There have just been so many 'brands' within the family that it makes it all the more confusing. If you know regionally what is owned by Valero then it was easy, but few know what all brands are truly associated with the brand.

Very smart move, very saavy move. Very overdue move. Shocked Greehey waited this long though.


The Valero colors and brand will grow on you. The Diamond Shamrock brand will go into the world of lore.

[MannyIsGod]

I would think someone like you would be excited about this, Buddy. It gains national recognition for San Antonio's premier company and employer. After the pending Premcor acquisition, Valero is poised to be #15 on the Fortune 500 - but who in America really knows what Valero does? Having Valero stations (in places where there was other brands before) puts an image to the name. Most people didn't know that Diamond Shamrock was a Valero Brand. In some way, this would be a positive thing for the city of San Antonio.

The Stop n' Go brand conversion was pre-Valero, IIRC. What's lost is the time/effort/money converting from "Diamond Shamrock" to "DS Corner Stores".

Along with the reason I mentioned, this is a way of upgrading Valero's retail business as well. Where Valero stations are already in existence, they are considered a Premium brand (like Shell) whereas Diamond Shamrock is not. Valero still has other brands, but obviously the Valero store will be the flagship retail presence.
I'm actually suprised Valero has decided to hold onto the Stations. The money in your company is made from refining and when I was there retail was just bringing the rest down.

The SnG transition was almost complete when I worked for UDS, and I was at the forefront of the project for the Corner Stores as well as stores that were not completely remodeled into corner stores but did undergo a large volume of improvements. I was responsible for some of the designs that went into the Corner Stores and the way they were implemented, so I'm sad to see them go.

That being said, it's a smart move, but I wonder if the real smart move isn't just getting rid of the entire retail operation.

[maxpower]

Dammit...I'm still calling them Sigmor

[PM5K]

Dammit...I'm still calling them Sigmor

I was just going to go there, I had an older relative that called them that...

[samikeyp]

Man, that sucks. Now I won't be able to say, "I'm going to Diamond Shamrock." I'll have to say, "I'm going to Valero."

I still catch myself saying "stop n go" :lol

anyone remember when 7-11 was actually here? How about Mr. M or Lone Star?

[atlfan25]

i am glad they are changing, i never felt diamond shamrock. once they change it to valero i will probably go there more often.

[scott]

Manny, there is value in having retail outlets that isn't necessarily captured in the bottom line.

[pooh]

I still catch myself saying "stop n go" :lol

anyone remember when 7-11 was actually here? How about Mr. M or Lone Star?

Yeah I remember when 7-11 was here. The one that was by my house got some publicity because they shot the overnight manager and stuffed him into the frozen ice cream section of the store. It was still be refurbished at the time also.

There is a lonestar ice house still open on the southside. Actually there are two. One I think still carries the "lonestar" name, the other is a mom and pop one now.

I'll probably always say "Shamrock" I never really said "stop n go". I miss the texaco stations. I still can't get used to new Shell stations here in town.

I wish we could get Mr.Pibb in town. They only sell it outside the city limits. I don't know why they did that though.

[atlfan25]

i wish 7-11 would come back :depressed

[blaze89]

I will always say "Shamrock", no matter what. I've lived near one (about half a block - walking distance) for years.

I do remember Lone Star stations and haven't adjusted to the old Texaco-Shell change.

[atlfan25]

i loved that texaco changed to shell, i adjusted immidiately

[Horry For 3!]

Interesting.

[CosmicCowboy]

Man, that sucks. Now I won't be able to say, "I'm going to Diamond Shamrock." I'll have to say, "I'm going to Valero."

It doesn't sound right.

this is San Antonio, dude...you are supposed to say "I'm going to the ice house"...:lol

that expression is as "San Antonio" as the Alamo...If you use it anywhere else in the country you will just get a blank look from people wanting to know why you would want to go to an ice plant...:lol

[CosmicCowboy]

Dammit...I'm still calling them Sigmor

and for bonus points do you know why it was called Sigmor?

[SpursWoman]

this is San Antonio, dude...you are supposed to say "I'm going to the ice house"...:lol



I was going to say ... 9 times out of 10 I just say "ice house" anyway....or the Habib-mart. :oops :lol

[SWC Bonfire]

Maybe now their diesel won't be half water.

Does anyone know who operates the "Shamrock" chain of retail outlets? They are not Diamond Shamrock, and you used to see old stations switch over to them, but now I see some brand new stations with that brand. Not "Diamond Shamrock", just "Shamrock".

[ObiwanGinobili]

Where i grew up you had 7-11's, Sunoco , and Shell.
I always went ot Sunoco or Shell. I loved them.

Then HESS moved in. HOw the hell do you say "I'm going down to HESS"???
but they had the cheapest gas anywhere... and you didin't have to get self serve to save $$.. the full service was the same price per gal as the sunoco down the street.
So sadly I did switch to HESS, but I called it Sunoco.

Speaking of..... I have only seen Full Service in Texas once.
It was in Victoria on Navarro South of Red River, like 2 blocks from Ritz Camera.
It had 2 pumps and some freaky looking parolee manning them. He'd pump it for you @ no charge. Then they closed down.
Since then - no full service to be seen.

[samikeyp]

I wish we could get Mr.Pibb in town. They only sell it outside the city limits. I don't know why they did that though.

Are you sure about that? I think I remember seeing it at HEB or Wal-Mart.

[Useruser666]

Walmart

[samikeyp]

thanks bro. I knew it was somewhere here in town.

[bigzak25]

best gas? chevron.

cheapest gas? costco.

where i end up most times? exxon. tigermarts are the shit! :smokin


but i did goto a shamrock yesterday...got gas and a Coke Zero....not bad. :drunk

[Jekka]

Speaking of..... I have only seen Full Service in Texas once.
It was in Victoria on Navarro South of Red River, like 2 blocks from Ritz Camera.
It had 2 pumps and some freaky looking parolee manning them. He'd pump it for you @ no charge. Then they closed down.
Since then - no full service to be seen.
I've seen full service in Houston several times, though always in more affluent neighborhoods like River Oaks, and there's one in Bellaire as well, but they all charge out the ass. I also heard there was a place somewhere in San Antonio that had full service, but I can't remember where for the life of me. A professor mentioned one once in a Texas politics class.

[tekdragon]

Manny:

You used to work at UDS? I did, too...I started when they were still in the Colonnade (pre-UDS), and made the move to the campus with them. I left about a year before the Valero buyout.

What department were you in?

[scott]

Maybe now their diesel won't be half water.

Does anyone know who operates the "Shamrock" chain of retail outlets? They are not Diamond Shamrock, and you used to see old stations switch over to them, but now I see some brand new stations with that brand. Not "Diamond Shamrock", just "Shamrock".

That's a Valero brand for distributors that do not meet Premium brand requirements.

[SWC Bonfire]

Thanks, scott. :tu

ADDENDUM: I guess I must hang out in some low-rent areas! :lol

[scott]

LOL... I don't want to discourage/encourage anyone from shopping at a particular outlet... but I'd say that sometimes you get what you pay for.

[MannyIsGod]

Manny:

You used to work at UDS? I did, too...I started when they were still in the Colonnade (pre-UDS), and made the move to the campus with them. I left about a year before the Valero buyout.

What department were you in?
I left a few months before the buyout. I started out in Pricebook and then basically worked for Jeff DeCastro with the catagory managers untill we started the Space Management Dept. We were in charge of doing a lot of the instore displays and marketing arrangements for the Corner Store project and the stores we did light remodeling on. I can't remember anymore what we called those.

I even did some work with the help desk guys going out to install the and work with the PDI registers when the rollout first started. I kind of got sucked into a lot of projects. Even though I was always officially in Pricebook, I only did that stuff for a few months. Actually, their refusual to give me an actual title (and the pay that went along with it) was my main reason for leaving. Well, that and I got tired of working with some really stupid people. Marketing was amazing there. It was almost as if they rewarded incompetence.
Where were you?

[AlamoSpursFan]

I was going to say ... 9 times out of 10 I just say "ice house" anyway....or the Habib-mart. :oops :lol

:lol

That Habib-mart on Rittiman is how I got most of my beer in my pre-21 days. I don't think Habib even knew how to say "Can I see your ID?"

"Habib, you cover cross trainers. Habib, you cover tennis. And Habib, you cover a hot dog with mustard and bring it back to me!" -- Al Bundy

[Babu]

:lol

That Habib-mart on Rittiman is how I got most of my beer in my pre-21 days. I don't think Habib even knew how to say "Can I see your ID?"

"Habib, you cover cross trainers. Habib, you cover tennis. And Habib, you cover a hot dog with mustard and bring it back to me!" -- Al Bundy

I always card and hotdogs are a bad thing....a very bad thing.

http://members.optusnet.com.au/paradyne/images/babu.gif