SAVANNAH, Ga. -- A judge's order will allow Savannah, Ga., businessman Greg Parker, president of Parker Cos., to continue his PumpPal discount gasoline advertising program while his case continues in court, the Savannah Morning News reported yesterday.
Chatham County Superior Court Judge Louisa Abbot's order will maintain the status quo, which she said will avoid loss to Parker.
Parker, whose company operates 25 convenience store/gas stations in Georgia and South Carolina, sued Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black and the state in a bid to keep his PumpPal program, which the state wants to alter to remove his club member price.
Parker advertises a club price, along with the regular price for his gasoline, usually as a 10-cents a gallon savings, on signs at all but one location.
He testified in court last week that the state gave him approval to display the signs and even received a letter of approval, added a report by WTOC-TV.
Parker testified about the importance of the signs. According to the report, he said the signs have resulted in 35,000 signups for the store's program.
Parker said he then spent $800,000 on his advertising campaign. Months later, he received a letter from the Georgia Department of Agriculture requesting that he take down the signs, saying they were deceptive because the price is not available right away.
Parker said the Ag department already gave him approval and that if he has to remove the signs it will affect his sales tremendously.
The judge must decide whether the signs will stay.
Click here for CSPTV coverage of PumpPal.
Parkers Cos. is a network of more than 20 Parker's Convenience Stores and Parker's Market Urban Gourmet stores in six counties throughout Georgia and South Carolina. The company also includes an oil jobbership, which distributes branded fuels to dealers throughout the Southeast. Other company businesses include Spin City laundromats and Urban Attic self-storage facilities.
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