MICHELE NORRIS, host:
If you think it hurts every time you visit the gas pump, believe it or not, some gas station operators are hurting too. Many make razor thin profits on gas sales. With the rising cost of oil and drivers cutting back, those profits are getting even slimmer.
Bill Burke runs Burke's Den Rock Mobil in North Andover, Massachusetts. He's been in the business for 40 years but hasn't turned a profit in a year. To make matters worse, he just got a letter from Exxon Mobil saying they may soon close him down. And they can do that because they officially own the station. Burke says between the high cost of fuel, credit card fees and rent he pays to Exxon, it's practically impossible for him to stay afloat.
Mr. BILL BURKE (Owner, Burke's Den Rock Mobil): Average service station my size costs $30,000 a month to month to run. Now, if you're working on 10, 12, 13 cents a gallon, it's not enough to pay the bills.
NORRIS: So how have you been keeping things together? We just noted that you haven't turned a profit in a year.
Mr. BURKE: Oh, more than a year. But no, we've been basically fortunate enough to be in business as long as we have. And at that point we've had savings that we're using to run the business now. I have...
NORRIS: So you've been living off your savings?
Mr. BURKE: Basically, I'm semi-retired. But I have checks that come in once a month and basically that money goes back into the business.
NORRIS: Now, the profits that you make from the convenience store, are you able to hold on to those? Or are there any profits?
Mr. BURKE: Well, basically, if you look at a day by day picture - I'll give you an example. Hold on just a minute. I'll give you a kind of a rundown on a daily basis. Basically, we pump on one particular day 6,339.7 gallons, which gave us a total profit of $1,144.11; service charges were $423.38, which is basically our fee for the credit cards, which left a balance of $720.73. It cost me over $850 a day just to run the business. We're running up short every day.
NORRIS: Exxon Mobile last week said that it plans to sell or close all of its gas stations. Did it surprise you?
Mr. BURKE: No. It didn't surprise me, no.
NORRIS: Did it make you a little bit angry though? I mean, you've been in this business for a long time.
Mr. BURKE: Well, you know, they're cutting costs, too. And you know, it's not to say I blame everything on Exxon Mobil, but if you can look at the oil business today, it's changed dramatically compared to what it was years ago. And the service station owner or the service station person that's running it, he's got expenses today that outsee(ph) the expenses that were in place, you know, 15 years ago or 10 years ago or even five years ago.
NORRIS: You know, sir, I must say that in the course of conversation, you sound mighty weary.
Mr. BURKE: Hmm. Yeah, because basically what transpires here is on a daily basis you're dealing with very uncomfortable people. It's not like you have a business and everybody gets up in the morning says, oh, I want to go there; they hate coming here.
(Soundbite of laugh)
Mr. BURKE: They don't want to buy gas but they have to. I'm just - not for me. I'm not just crying in my own beer, you know, it's tough for everybody.
NORRIS: Well, Mr. Burke, I know you've got customers there, so thanks so much for taking time to talk to us. We're going to let you get back - let you get back to work, sir. Thank you very much for your time.
Mr. BURKE: Thank you.
NORRIS: Bill Burke runs Burke's Den Rock Mobil in North Andover, Massachusetts. All the best to you, Mr. Burke. Thanks so much.
Mr. BURKE: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.