Old gas pumps not engineered for $4 fuel prices
Gas station owners hope focus on in-store products will keep them open
9:31 p.m. Friday, July 4, 2008
Milford — With the rip of a ticket, Laura Clement makes another sale.
Laura and her husband, Terry, own Clem's Convenience Corner in Milford, where a problem at their gas pumps is causing business to sink, despite holiday sales.
Some mom-and-Pop gas stations actually have such old technology that their pumps cannot read $4 a gallon fuel prices. That's the case at Clem's.
So, the owners actually cut the price of gasoline in half on the pump, and then doubled it at the register to meet today's price.
To replace these types of pumps, it can cost up to $100,000 for this station. That’s not including days they’ll lose business during the installation of the pumps.
The Clements say it's a price that's incredibly high for a privately owned business.
"It's a big lesson, “ Laura said. “Had we known, possibly we would have done something different when we bought the establishment but we had no idea that gas was going to go as high as it was, that the pumps were as old as they were and that we would have to replace them.”
The pumps were made in the 1960s, when gas was sold for 19 cents a gallon.
The Clements bought the store earlier this year, and sales outside of holidays have been slow. Yet, Terry says purchases at the pump aren't their biggest goal.
”Our goal is to get them in the door to buy a pop or coffee, and we have more and more people buying their milk and bread here. If we can keep it within their price range, if it's affordable to them,” Terry says. “'Cause the gas costs them another seven miles just to drive into town, too.
”It’s actually kind of outrageous,” said Cory Newell, a Salina resident visiting Milford Lake. “We spent more money coming out here, with the boat, gas and everything than we have with $100 worth of steaks and food just to eat and everything.”
The Clements takes note of the higher fuel prices' effect on customers.
"It's killing 'em,” Laura said. “When you have high rent, high food, high gas, you have to cut something out. So what are you going to cut out? So, we're concerned."
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