Gas Station Business Tips

As a gas station owner, you are familiar with the benefits and challenges of the industry. One way for you to stay competitive and build your business is to diversify the services you offer at your business location(s). The gas station industry is experiencing moderate growth in the face of fluctuating oil prices and competition.
Smart gas station owners are growing their business through supplementary services like car washes and check cashing. This article takes a close look at the gas station industry, the supplementary services that can grow your business, and the specific retail check cashing services that can build your fee-based income stream.

The Gas Station Industry

The gas station industry is steadily growing, despite its complicated nature. Many business experts consider gas stations to be a recession proof industry. In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, many small business shuttered their windows and closed up shop. Gas stations weathered the storm and stayed open at a higher rate than other industries. As of 2016, there are over 120,000 gas stations in the United States, according to reports. Of these gas stations, over 80% have an attached convenience stores.
Gas stations, however, have razor thin profit margins, with some analysts putting the average profit per dollar at 2 cents. These margins are an obstacle that gas station owners have to overcome. In addition to fluctuating gas prices, gas station owners also have to consider variable overhead costs, safety concerns, and multiplying competition. That said, an efficiently run gas station can be a lucrative and secure business opportunity.

Tips For Your Gas Station Business

Running a business requires a strong strategy. Since oil prices remain low and volatile, optimizing the rest of your gas station business is crucial for growth and success. Here are some tips to help gas station owners build profitable businesses:

1. Comply with your local, state, and federal regulations and requirements
2. Keep regular and punctual business hours
3. Hire reliable, polite, and motivated employees
4. Run a tight ship, maintaining accurate inventory and reconciling each day
5. Promote safety and security of your employees
6. Invest in security measures like cameras, alarm, and shatterproof glass
7. Keep gas stocked by effectively maintaining your supply chain schedule
8. Add supplementary services to diversify your business

These tips represent a very basic collection of methods for improving your gas station business. Your own business strategy should be built around an analysis of the local, regional, and national market. What works for a gas station in New York City differs from a gas station in Texas.

Supplemental Services for Gas Stations

Since the gas station industry is competitive and variable, as mentioned above, supplemental services are a wonderful way to reinforce your business. Adding one of the following services helps you multiply your revenue streams and attract even more customers to your location. Increase foot traffic helps support your gas station bottom line.

1. Convenience Store
2. Car Wash
3. Tire Change & Shop
4. Oil Change & Lubrication Services
5. Auto Repair & Maintenance
6. Check Cashing

Convenience stores are the most popular addition to gas stations in the United States. This list represents 6 supplemental services you can add to your gas station to diversify and grow. In general, you should avoid adding an auto repair, tire change, or oil change shop to your gas station unless you have experience as a mechanic. Retail check cashing services, on the other hand, are appropriate for all gas station owners, regardless of experience.

Check Cashing for Gas Stations

Check cashing for gas stations encompasses a wide array of services: payroll check cashing, bill pay, prepaid debit cards, phone cards, ATM, state lottery, money orders, money transfer, and traveler’s checks. You can tailor your line-up of retail check cashing services to meet the needs of your community.
Offering these services builds off the fact that your gas station is a community hub. Check cashing services increase your role in the neighborhood by enabling you to promote financial inclusion. Roughly 7% of households in the United States are unbanked, which means they do not have access to a traditional bank account. As a result, they do not have access to a bank through which to cash their paycheck, pay bills, or transfer money.
Retail check cashing outlets provide a way for these households to access financial services. At the same time, your gas station business benefits from:

1. Increased foot traffic
2. Improved custom loyalty
3. Fee-based revenue
4. Income diversification

If your gas station could benefit from any of the four points above, it is time to consider gas station check cashing. If your gas station already operates check cashing services, then it is time to consider how you can improve your efficiency and protect against fraud.
Retail check cashers cashing checks less than $1,000 per customer per day are not subject to the same regulation as MSBs cashing over $1,000 per customer per day. These unregulated check cashers still face the same issue securing and maintaining their check cashing bank accounts.

NCC Retail Check Cashing Services

Nation Check and Currency provides a powerful and reliable network of redundant check cashing banks. This redundancy means you never have to worry about losing your bank account abruptly. NCC’s banking partners also provide real MSB bank accounts that keep your business up and running.
A team of MSB compliance experts helps you optimize your check cashing business, from customer verification to fast deposit turnaround. NCC provides advanced Point of Sale (POS) technology to help you identify and record your customers and their transactions. Remote Deposit Capture (RDC) allows you to collect vital information and communicate transparently with your bank. Finally, NCC facilitates armored cash transfer, quick deposit turnaround, and other helpful supported MSB services.
Are you ready to explore your gas station check cashing business opportunity? Discover the benefits of a reliable check cashing bank account and a team of compliance experts.