RO Concept OSCAR, the network of franchise gas stations, developed by OSCAR Downstream – the largest independent fuel supplier in Romania, celebrates 7 years of activity and 90 gas stations, nationwide.
The first RO stations were opened in November 2017, near Craiova (Dolj County) and Slobozia (Ialomița County), in line with the OSCAR Downstream strategy to develop a new concept of gas stations that would bring the OSCAR quality standard to towns of medium and small, giving all customers access to quality products and services.
The competitive advantages of the RO franchise have determined a very alert pace of development for a gas station franchise started from scratch. Today, the RO network is a business model with proven performance in one of the most competitive and dynamic segments of the fuel distribution industry in Romania.
With 90 stations across the country, RO is a symbol of solid partnership and commitment to excellence, built step by step together with entrepreneurs who share our core values: Care, Respect, Professionalism and Quality.
Thanks to the entire team who put passion and dedication into the development of this project, turning every challenge into an opportunity for growth. And to our partners for their valuable day-to-day contribution that helps us remain a benchmark of quality and professionalism.
Togetherwe build more than businesses – we build relationships based on trust and shared values.
“Through the RO franchise, we have transferred to B2C our experience of over 23 years of excellence and performance in the B2B segment, a market very sensitive to quality and professionalism. RO Concept OSCAR quickly became a success story both for OSCAR Downstream, which thus began to consolidate a solid business on the retail market, but also for our franchise partners, to whom we offer a long-term partnership and a high-performance business and with scaling possibilities. We have partners in our portfolio who, as they developed their first RO gas station and understood the business very well, expanded with one or more units”, says Nicolae BanicaCEO OSCAR Downstream. “We continue to attract new partners to the RO network and, at the same time, help the existing ones to develop, because we have great confidence in the growth potential of this business model.”
Lucian HarangușOSCAR Downstream’s Director of Sales and Retail, adds: “In recent years, we have significantly accelerated our pace of growth, with an average of 15 new petrol stations per year. Based on the franchise partnership, our company fully supports the initial investment in the external modernization of the station, and the partner pays it during the course of the contract, without additional credit costs. This takes the financial pressure off and helps the partner focus on growing the business. The experience of the first 7 years of activity has shown us that, under normal operating conditions, entering the RO network generates an average increase in sales volume of over 30%, so that RO partners can repay the investment from the additional profit obtained during the development the contract”.
RO gas stations are modern stations, strategically placed nationally, which offer customers personalized and diversified services, respecting OSCAR quality standards. The RO franchise is a long-term partnership, with quality products and the possibility for partners to offer a substantial range of additional services, which make the difference in an extremely segmented market with significant growth potential in terms of quality.
Each RO partner thus benefits from the products and facilities available to OSCAR Downstream’s B2B customers, starting with access to the largest integrated logistics platform in Romania, which ensures absolute control over product quality from entry into the OSCAR ecosystem to the pump. Fuel delivery to RO gas stations is ensured within a maximum of 24 hours, anywhere in Romania and in any quantity.
Every customer of RO gas stations has access to a diverse range of premium fuels, and companies can use OSCAR fleet cards, cards that ensure efficient management of fuel consumption and offer facilities such as payment at the pump, ease of refueling and transaction transparency. In addition to fueling with gasoline and diesel, drivers can have access to LPG stations, charging stations for electric cars, as well as specific services: car wash, car wash services, 24/7 shop, cafe and Wi-Fi access.
With a history of over 23 years, OSCAR Downstream is the largest independent fuel distribution company in Romania, in the top 5 players, with an annual portfolio of over 5,000 clients from key industries, such as transport, construction, industry or agriculture.
Its gas station network has reached 120 strategically distributed stations nationwide: 30 own stations dedicated to the B2B customer segment under the brand OSCAR Drive, positioned along the main commercial roads and 90 franchise gas stations under the brand RO concept OSCARfor B2C customers, launched in 2017.
Added to these are over 2,500 indoor stations OSCAR – DIESELPoint (a concept introduced for the first time on the Romanian market by OSCAR Downstream in 2004, which allows refueling directly at the customer’s location). OSCAR Downstream is the only profile company in Romania that offers customers maintenance and service services for these indoor stations.
Its high-performance logistics infrastructure includes, in its own integrated logistics chain, a fleet of over 100 modern tankers (the largest own fleet of tankers on the Romanian market), as well as its own storage network, with a storage capacity of diesel and gasoline over 75,000 mc.
The 7 OSCAR warehouses are located at a distance of at least 200 km from each other, in order to respond promptly to requests and to provide fuel in optimal conditions, anywhere in the country: Șercaia (Brașov county), Zădăreni (Arad county), Ocna Mureș (Alba County), Roman (Neamț County), Craiova (Dolj County), Fundulea (Călărași County), Constanța (County Constanta). The warehouses in Șercaia, Zădăreni, Ocna Mureș and Roman are Greenfield constructions completed in the last 9 years, with new technology and care for the environment.
OSCARDownstream is part of the Alfa Group entrepreneurial group, founded by Alin Niculae.
Source: www.iqads.ro
