Introducing: Esso Petrol Station Mayer in Memmingen
The Brand Mayer
The Mayer family - for over 20 years a member of the Federal Association of Petrol Stations and Commercial Car Washes (BTG) - has successfully managed the Esso petrol station in Memminger Bodenseestraße for 56 years. In the past one and a half years they have once again set the course for their business future.
When Harald Mayer, the current owner of the Esso Memmingen petrol station, entered into the petrol station business at the turn of the millennium and it was certain that he would take over the petrol station with shop and car wash from his parents, the busling family of entrepreneurs increased the sales area in the shop from 35 to 100 square metres. The conversion at that time included the implementation of a bakery shop. "We were the first to set up a bakery shop in a petrol station in Memmingen," remembers Harald Mayer. Even today, the bakery shop is still a good source of the business. "Great coffee, delicious marzipan croissants! Simply fantastic, it is like a holiday for your soul here," was written by a customer on the Facebook page of the Esso Mayer petrol station on 13 April 2019. The year before in 2018 the Mayers had already converted the shop once again. For the sales area this meant a new counter, a modern display case and a more powerful oven. At the same time, new incentives were created to allow customers to drink coffee in a feel-good atmosphere and to counteract hunger and thirst with sophisticated offers. Besides eight seats, two bar tables with seating and a bar table are available. "A total of twelve customers can now have breakfast at the same time," says a happy Harald Mayer. He adds: "Despite the growing number of competition in recent years, we're seeing great capacity utilization in our bakery and bistro." On the area under the petrol station roof, customers fuel with Super E5, Super E10 and diesel. AdBlue containers are ready for sale on the shop shelf. The Mayers accept the DeutschlandCard, DKV, UTA and fuel cards as well as the Esso Card and Esso vouchers.
Petrol Station Mayer and Car Wash of the Same Age
Father Clemens and his wife started the petrol station business more than half a century ago. The takeover of a petrol station from Esso took place in autumn 1963. A short time later Clemens Mayer bought the legendary rotary Wesumat I from Kleindienst, invented and developed by Gebhard Weigele and Johann Sulzberger in Augsburg in 1962, and washed customer vehicles with it at his leased Memmingen Esso Station. Five years later, the Mayers decided to renew the washing technology and bought the second wash tunnel in 1968 produced by Franz Christ, the then managing director of today's Otto Christ AG in the nearby village Benningen. The conveyor chain already pulled the customer vehicles over 20 meters through two wash portals and a double blower. The customers drove their cars to the entrance of the wash hall which was already located directly at the back of the petrol station building at that time. "Through the years we rebuilt the wash and drying areas, renewed washing and drying technology", Harald Mayer points out. At the turn of the millennium, textile wash material was used in the wash tunnel.
Premium with Top Quality
Since mid-April 2019, the Mayer family's comprehensive range of services has included a premium wash tunnel from Otto Christ AG. The large investment represents the temporary highlight of the customer service offered in the car wash sector. "It has to last at least 50 years" says Harald Mayer's mother with a wink during the trial wash. Up to now it is the largest modernization step with a substantial investment in the petrol station. "The former unit was getting on in years. We increasingly had the problem to clean the modern rims. The growing vehicle size and cars with synchronous transmissions have always confronted us with problems," Harald Mayer explains the decision not only to renew the washing technology but also to convert the two-part wash hall building. "Since we had been informed about the current state of washing technology by our Christ consultant, we considered the moment to invest in the latest washing and care technology to be just right. Before the conversion, official approvals and permits had to be obtained. "The constructional changes required a signed building application and among other things water permits, because we built the water storage situation completely new. The challenge was to place and lay the 30 cubic metre underground storage tank and the necessary new pipelines in such a way that both would not collide with the existing separator system of the petrol station".
The Man for Such Cases
The experienced Christ consultant Paolo Micciche has been in charge of the car wash technology of the Maier family for many years. "We've been working together a long time now. I've always been in close contact. The result was a really good business partnership, supported by professional competence and mutual loyalty which began more than 30 years ago," says Paolo Micciche describing the mutual cooperation. When today's washing technology expert began his professional career at Christ with training as a power plant electronics engineer, "Mr. Clemens Mayer had long been a customer of ours. It was on this trusting basis that the new project came about." A project that was to live primarily on the great value and very best service of the car wash, since the Mayer family attached great importance to it. The new concept suggested combining the two-part wash hall building, adding the installations room and reinstalling the electrical distribution system.
High Performance Wash Tunnel
The Mayer family only wanted washing and care technology of best quality. The generously dimensioned two-part pre-wash area with pre-spray and high-pressure lances arranged on both sides is followed by a modern checkout area, backlit pre-wash arch with foam fan nozzles, high-pressure units, powerful wheel and sill washers on both sides. Four lateral brushes, two contour brushes and two horizontal brushes do the thorough and gentle washing. The care zone starts with rinsing fan nozzles directly in front of the preservation arch and powerful drying blower "AEROFLEX-3", drying portal with two lateral brushes. A swinging transversely drying mitter equipped with "TEDDYTEX® strips" completes the high-quality technical equipment. "The large pre-wash area was a special wish of mine," says Harald Mayer. "The former pump bottle should no longer be used for manual pre-wash. We therefore decided to set up workplaces for two spray lances and two high-pressure lances." The absolute highlight is a double conveyor with plates made of plastic. "This highlight does not exist in a private car wash within a radius of 600 kilometres," Paolo Micciche knows. "The people who have the greatest affinity with the vehicle, who drive sporty all-wheel drive vehicles with matching rim constructions, benefit from the double conveyor with plates. It is impossible for customers to damage their rims in Mayer's car wash," confirms the Christ expert. - The Wash-Manager cash system is by no means inferior to the washing technology. His hallmarks are fast checkout processes with a professional customer retention system.
Without Standstill
The conversion begins in the installations room immediately after the public holiday"Holy Three Kings". The Mayer family necessarily closes the car wash. Probably the luck of the brave helps them in the days of modernization. "The ground was never frozen," says Harald Mayer. "There was never a standstill in construction." It may be that a farmer's rule also helped them: "If there is no winter until Holy Three Kings, there shall be no more severe winter." The company carrying out the construction organised all measures precisely and carried out the work quickly and conscientiously. "We barely missed our goal of reopening in early April 2019. On April 12, 2019, we finally started trial wash," says Harald Mayer. Instead of the previous five, the Mayers are now offering customers four wash programmes. Their name is mentioned in the greeting at the pre-spray device: "Welcome to Mayer's car wash." The names of the quartet are "Mayer's Top Service", "Mayer's Best", "Mayers' Feines" and "Mayer's Gutes". Underbody wash and perfect gloss polish can be added by customers. "We have received only positive feedback so far. People are thrilled, great."
He denies the question of what could perhaps have been done differently. "Everything we wanted was done." Something else seems more than interesting. "In the three months in which our wash tunnel was closed, I lost around 15 percent of fuel sales in the filling station sector. That is a lot. So you can already see that the wash business for the turnover at the petrol station cannot be seen in isolation. I also lost a lot of sales in the shop. That's why I'm of the opinion that whoever washes at my place also fills up at my place and also buys in the shop."
Quote:
Harald Mayer: "Our family has been running a wash tunnel at the petrol station for over 50 years."
Harald Mayer: "I'm of the opinion that a good car wash is an essential part of every petrol station."
Paolo Micciche: "When someone in Memmingen talks about a wash tunnel, he talks about the Mayer family in Bodenseestraße."
Bernd Fiehöfer, report BTG - Der Tankstellenberater - issue september 2019
Otto Christ AG - The Real Car Wash Factory
Domestic, export product enquiries:
Phone +49 (0) 83 31 857- 200, sales@christ-ag.com (International)
Phone +49 (0) 83 31 857-100, verkauf@christ-ag.com (Germany)
Fax + 49 (0) 83 31 857-185
Car Care division:
Phone +49 (0) 83 31 857-4880, chemie@christ-ag.com
Fax +49 (0) 83 31 857-4888
Request Xpress catalogue:
Phone +49 (0) 83 31 857-394, bestellung@christ-carwash-shop.de
Fax +49 (0) 83 31 857-495
Press:
Phone + 49 (0) 8331 857-180, mwoerle@christ-ag.com