Suncor Energy Inc. is an integrated Canadian energy company based in Calgary, Alberta, whose operations include oil-sands development and upgrading, conventional and offshore oil and gas production, petroleum refining and product marketing under the Petro-Canada and Sunoco brands. In March 2009, Suncor and Petro-Canada agreed to a merger worth approximately $15.5 billion in U.S. dollars.
The company's combined retail network comprises as many as 1,500 Petro-Canada company-controlled and dealer locations nationwide, many of which have Glide or SuperWash car washes. Of the Petro-Canada-branded sites, 750 are company-controlled SuperStop or Neighbours convenience-store operations. Non-truckstop stores measure as small as 800 square feet and as large as 4,000 square feet; on average newly built stores span 1,500 square feet. The Petro-Canada name has extremely strong brand recognition in Canada, as evidenced by the company tagline "Canada's Gas Station."
Petro-Canada dealers are essentially buying the iconic banner for fuel. Retailers operating company-controlled SuperStop and Neighbours network, however, benefit not only from the Petro-Canada fuel brand but also from optimized store layouts, plan-o-grams, product-selection insights and supply logistics provided by Suncor's convenience and foodservice teams.
While many U.S. oil companies have shied from managing their retail networks directly, the Petro-Canada retail network is a vital cog in the company's downstream mix.
In 2004 the company undertook an ambitious project to recast its retail future by creating Neighbours. The design pairs Petro-Canada's strengths (its iconic fuel brand, primarily) with a unique box that incorporates winning concepts from global c-store, QSR and coffeehouse channels. Approximately 20 Neighbours stores have been built or converted in the Ontario market. The company planned to add 10 to 20 new stores in 2015 but is moving away from the Neighbours brand, will remain in existing locations but is no longer in rollout.
As for the direction the company plans to take in the near future, QSRs are being added to more locations in select parts of the country. The QSRs are being added as free-standing units in the parking lot, however, not inside the c-stores.
| Headquarters: | Mississauga, Ontario |
|---|---|
| No. of Stores: | 750 |
| Average Store Size: | 1,000-2,500 sq. ft. |
| Rank: | 10 |
| Rank Last Year: | 11 |
| States of Operation: | Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Northwest Territories, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon |
| Website: | http://www.petro-canada.ca |
