Accelerating Retail On-the-Go

When we think of petrol stations, we think of it as just a place to refuel and relieve. We used to just stop at a petrol station for either one or two things, either to pump petrol into a depleting tank or to use the washroom.

But, with more and more of the urban population spending a significant time on the go, petrol stations are becoming a critical point where businesses are able to interact with their consumers. Whether its stuck in a traffic jam or travelling from one place to another in the search of food, petrol stations are ideally positioned as one of the places with a high traffic. 

This opens up a whole new world of possiblities as these are instances that could be used to their retail advantage. With more operators coming to realize that just selling petrol isn't going to cut it, an increasing number of these stations are trying to offer more than just petrol to motorists. 

With more and more brick-and-mortar shops closing down in the face of the immense threat of e-commerce, you could say that petrol stations remain largely unscathed. This is because it is impossible to refuel via a virtual channel. Fuel stations simply can't go online, at least not at this point in time. Perhaps, in the future, yes. 

Thanks to this, petrol stations have the potential to be an integration point for a range of services. In doing so, it will enable more transactions occur and therefore increase revenue.  

Shell was the first to get on the petrol retail bandwagon when they partnered with Costa Coffee to offer self-serve coffee at 200 locations across their stores. With endless customizations for customers looking to make their own drink, this partnership is more than just introducing a new, popular coffee brand to the Malaysian market. Its biggest draw comes from the fact that it doesn't just offer a new brand of coffee, but rather the experience of making your own coffee shop-quality coffee on-the-go. 

And when we go to Shell nowadays, they offer more than just Costa Coffee. They have partnered up with Loob Holdings to bring brands such as Gindaco, Llao Llao and Tealive. Not to mention that when we walk into Shell station, we would likely be greeted by the aroma of freshly-baked pastries from their Deli2Go outlets. 

Now, we are seeing many other petrol station outlets following suit. They are all eager to capitalize upon the on-the-go lifestyle. 

When you stop at Petronas, you will undoubtedly notice quite a number of them with KFC and Pizza Hut drive-through outlets. 

Oldtown White Coffee also recently launched their ONtheGO kiosks in petrol retail throughout Malaysia, starting with selected BHPetrol outlets. The local coffee chain is looking to place itself at high-traffic petrol retail spots nationwide with more than 50 locations within the next five years.

In addition to providing more F&B options on the highway, petrol stations are now offering seating lounges, electronic charging stations, WiFi and more urban conveniences.