Saturday, May 29, 2004
Giant Eagle, Kroger and Wal-Mart are among the participating retailers.
PERRYSBURG, Ohio (AP) -- Mark Johnson didn't flinch or grimace even as the numbers on the gas pump ticked toward $60. He had a fist full of gas coupons Friday that his wife collected for buying groceries.
"When it's two bucks a gallon, you've got to do something," he said while putting 30 gallons into his recreational vehicle before heading to a campground over Memorial Day weekend.
The six coupons from Giant Eagle grocery store -- good for a total of 60 cents off each gallon of gas -- saved him $18. "I use it all the time," Johnson said.
Grocery and convenience stores are promoting discounts at the pump to attract customers shopping for better deals at a time when fuel is hovering at record prices.
According to AAA Ohio Auto Club's daily report on gas prices, Ohioans are paying an average of $2.02 per gallon for self-serve, regular gas.
Giant Eagle is offering 10 cents off each gallon at its filling stations for every $50 of groceries purchased in its stores. The deal brought in quite a few customers Friday in suburban Toledo.
Down the street at a Kroger grocery store, customers who bought specific brands of steak sauce, toilet paper and cat food were rewarded with coupons that saved anywhere from 50 cents to $2.50 off their fuel bill at the company's gas stations.
"It's even more valuable than it was a few months ago," said Kroger spokesman Dale Hollandsworth.
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The company's shopper cards also take off 3 cents a gallon.
"Any way you can knock off a few bucks is worth it," said Sue Hoffman of Perrysburg.
The savings are only good at gas stations operated by the grocery chains, putting independent dealers at a disadvantage, said Mike Kunnen, president of the Greater Cincinnati Gasoline Dealers Association.
"That's why we're worried about Wal-Mart and Krogers going into the gasoline business. They can do low-cost selling," Kunnen said.
He said gas discounting promotions like Giant Eagle's won't last for long and won't spread to service stations.
"They could give it away for a short period of time, but I don't think it's going to be contagious," Kunnen said. "It's a chaotic market right now, very chaotic."
Laurie Barteck of Perrysburg in suburban Toledo said the discounts make it easier to top off the 40-gallon tank on their sport utility vehicle.
"I'll go wherever I can to get a discount," she said. "One time we filled up for 20 bucks. We never do that."
It's not just the grocery stores that are using gas to attract business.
The Cleveland-based chapter of the American Red Cross, which provides blood to 57 hospitals in a 19-county region, is offering each blood donor an entry for a drawing for $1,500 worth of gasoline.
The Red Cross felt its concern about dwindling blood supplies was akin to how a motorist feels when the gas gauge hits empty, spokeswoman Karen Kelley said. "That sort of generated the concept," she said.
Every time someone donates a pint of blood or brings in a new donor by Aug. 31, the person gets a sweepstakes entry.