Why isn't EOM oil the highest selling PCMO?

[addyguy]

ExxonMobil, in it's various formats through the years, has always been a huge company. I don't know the exact timeline, but Standard Oil was so big, it was broken up in the early 20th century.

Esso/Exxon was the main us 'unit' left, AFAIK and they have always made car engine oil. They merged much later with Mobil Oil, who also made conventional and synthetic oil.

Even before this merger, Esso/Exxon was so large that it would have been easy for them to be the no. 1 selling oil in the US. But AFAIK, that tile has mostly been claimed by Quaker State and then Pennzoil, which before their merger were much smaller companies.

Since the merger, I'd expent it to be a no-brainer that with their refining capacity, and the No. 1 selling syn oil (M1), EOM would be the highest selling motor oil company in the US, but that title is still owned by Pennzoil and Quaker State, who are 1 and 2 within the same company, which is STILL smaller than EOM!

Anyone know why this is?

 

[Johnny]

Marketing and target direction. Back in the 50's large companies like Exxon, Mobil, Shell, Texaco, and Chevron decided to go after the larger commercial and industrial markets and companies like Pennzoil, Quaker State, Valvoline, Kendall went after the automotive market. For many years Quaker State held the number one position until 1985 when Pennzoil took it from them. Mobil has made great strides with their Mobil 1 product line, but to the general consumer the rest of their product line is just a gas brand.

 

[Stu_Rock]

By most measures, what makes an oil company "big" is their upstream operations. That's where the money is.

The downstream operations that most of us encounter in daily life is a small portion of the majors' business.

 

[addyguy]

Thanks Johnny - I figured it was something like that.

Johnny - do you know if there is a list anywhere of the no.1-selling oils in America, from the 'start'?

 

[Johnny]

I have never seen a list like that, "from the start/beginning". I've only seen NPD market share research since 1985.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Look at the distribution: Pennzoil/SOPUS owns JiffyLube - probably one of the largest quickie lube chains. Through JL establishments, millions of gallons of Pennzoil oil get sold to customers. Probably way more than what people typically buy individually at an auto part store.

Also, like Johnny mentioned, XOM has a good premium brand (M1) but most of the consumers don't bother to spend big bucks on premium oil. They buy the cheapest stuff that does the job, like Pennzoil or Castrol.

 

[fdcg27]

XOM is the leader by far in the high margin synthetic (not trying to argue what is or isn't sythetic) PCMO market.
OTOH, both Pennzoil Conventional and Quaker State Conventional have long had loyal followings, and there are those who'd rather push their trucks in the absence of Rotella than drive them on Delo or Delvac.

 

[Gary Allan]

Up until divestiture became en vogue, most oil companies marketed their oils through their retail gas station network. That was, AFAIK, the only retail outlet for Uniflo oils. Independent outlets (everything from dealerships, part stores, indy gas stations, and Kmart) marketed the QS and PZ offerings. The exception being that there were indeed QS gas stations in the Oil City region.