Keeping customers happy and employees employed
Since the change of ownership last May the UPPI group of gas stations in BC has been busy branding stations and rebranding stations to reflect the happy situation of good ownership and management. The policy of continuous growth in First Nations economic development also reflects positively on the bottom line at the growing concern.
Trent Bilodeau is UPPI northern territory manager, "Many aspects of our business involve development of First Nation sites, including the recent rebranding and signage upgrades at Stellako Band owned Slenyah Store and the Anahim Lake area gas station and store business owned by Alexis Creek First Nation."
Trent is working with others along Highway 16 west of Prince George to establish the UPPI business presence both on-reserve and into other communities. UPPI took over the Slenyah Store location at Stellako (2 km east of Fraser Lake, BC, "about a year and a half ago."
This business has been a positive outcome for the UPPI distributors. "This is a well run outfit," said Bilodeau, who alluded to the First Nation operation as being successful and the community as being proud owners. "They are a good example of why UPPI is always looking to do business with First Nations in this region."
UPPI likes to give back to communities that make strong efforts at economic development. "We enjoy working at the community level, making contributions to communities that are working with 'at risk' youth," he said, regarding kids entering their teens and meeting up with the peer pressures that cause misguided behaviours.
"We made a sizable contribution this summer to take kids to Vancouver," where they learned about the dos and don'ts related to urban life. "These communities have earned the corporate support and we give it."
UPPI is happy to make themselves into the small but efficient economic drivers that store/stations become in small centres like Stellako. "New signage and remaking the image is important, and we do it to keep the dollars flowing into the communities." They offer status member pricing, so, naturally, they get the local area business, but new signs and store fronts bring in the highway traffic as well, which also helps grow the business and feed the economy of the tiny community.
"Consistency is important for them to run the business in the local economy. We did a make-over of the pumps and highway signs and the Slenyah logo sits with the UPPI logo today. They are flying the flag above their efforts and Trent is pleased with his dealings and the management of the Slenyah property. He spent six years as a distributor of 76 lubes and oils and the past year as the territorial manager for UPPI.
Sally Larson is the manager of the UPPI outfit at Slenyah Store, "I am the acting manager for the store owned by the Stellako Band," said she, "where we sell gasoline, confections and some groceries and cigarettes." They offer microwaveable food products and employ eight people on a part-time basis in the store.
"We are switching to winter hours as of November 4th, 6 A.M. to 10 P.M. (and won't revert to summer hours until next May (6 A.M. to 11 P.M.)," she said. On Sundays they open an hour later, 7 A.M.. "We have a highway 16 location on the reserve properties, and we get the highway traffic for our business as well as the local community members as customers who want the status member pricing."
Stellako First Nation has about 200 on-reserve community members. Fraser Lake is about 3.5 km to the east. Other nearby First Nations community members also shop for their gas at the Slenyah Store UPPI site. "We have had a store and gas station here since 1999, and became a UPPI outlet last year."
Staffing has been easy for Sally, "Our employees like their jobs; we have no trouble keeping them employed. We are actually looking for some people to work through the Christmas period so employees can take a break." As for the current process of rebranding the site with signs and so forth, Sally said, "We are getting nice comments and compliments about the look."
Customers seem to be happy with the new pumps and look of the service station, and of course the additional services in the community.
TAKE THE PULSE
