EL PASO, Texas -- A new Howdy's Food Mart that opened Dec. 20, 2006, in northeastern El Paso, Texas, is the city's first retail outlet to sell Western brand gasoline that is produced at El Paso's Western Refining Inc. refinery, reported The El Paso Times.
The 3,500-sq.-ft. store also features a full-service McDonald's restaurant and a car wash.
Right now, we're the last store heading out of town and the first one coming in, Troy Calhoun, executive vice president of El Paso-based Transmountain Oil Co., which owns and operates 14 [image-nocss] Howdy's stores in El Paso and southern New Mexico, told the newspaper. We know other businesses will be built around us, but it's important in retail to build people's habits by offering competitive prices, friendly employees and convenience.
Calhoun said his company has been working with El Paso-based Western Refining for about two years to develop a retail gasoline brand and the new gold-and-black W logo that the store uses. The brand has been test-marketed at two Howdy's stores in Las Cruces since September, he said.
Calhoun said it is possible that more Howdy's stores in the El Paso and Las Cruces market could sell the Western brand in the future.
The new store is also an attempt to keep ahead of large convenience store chains such as 7-Eleven, Calhoun added. What [competition] does is make us work harder and be innovative. Our philosophy is we're not the biggest chain, but we can be the best.
Howdy's creates its market niche by offering what it calls an innovative product line, such as having a bigger selection of imported and microbrewed beer and wines than the average c-store, according to the report.
In other Western Refining news, Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Giant Industries Inc. announced today that it has scheduled a special meeting of stockholders for Feb. 27, 2007, at which stockholders of record as of Jan. 26, 2007, will be entitled to vote on the pending acquisition by Western Refining of all of the outstanding shares of Giant for $77 in cash pursuant to the previously announced merger. The deal is currently expected to close in first-quarter 2007 and is not subject to any financing conditions. The closing of the transaction is subject to approval by Giant stockholders and the satisfaction of other closing conditions.
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