JOBBERSWORLD...MARKET INTELLIGENCE FOR INTELLIGENT MARKETERS...    

PetroChoice, a leading provider of lubrication solutions, announced today that it has acquired Suburban Oil Company ("Suburban"), located in Mason, Ohio. PetroChoice is focused on acquiring best-in-class lubricant distributors to expand both its product and service offering to customers and its geographic footprint. "Suburban is a great fit with PetroChoice and we are impressed by Suburban's highly trained team. Like us, they pride themselves on delivering comprehensive lubrication solutions to their customers," said Shane O'Kelly, CEO of PetroChoice. "This acquisition creates a significant opportunity for us to expand our distribution presence into Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky."

From Left to Right, Mike Monahan, CFO PetroChoice; Jeff Pyles, President, Suburban; Shane O'Kelly, CEO PetroChoice; Larry Hayes, CEO Suburban

    
Suburban serves a diverse set of commercial and industrial customers across a broad range of industries. "We view PetroChoice as a market leader and are excited to join the PetroChoice team. Their core values and culture align well with Suburban's and our capabilities and industry expertise are very complementary" said Larry Hayes, CEO of Suburban Oil. "Leveraging the combined resources of Suburban and PetroChoice will enable us to to continue to expand our service area and enhance the range of products, services and solutions we can offer to our customers," added Jeff Pyles, President of Suburban Oil. Other than Mr. Hayes, who is retiring, the entire staff of Suburban including the sales and operations team will be staying with the company.

About PetroChoice:

PetroChoice is a leading value-added provider of petroleum based lubrication products and services in the Mid Atlantic and MidWest regions. The Company provides its customers with Lubrication Solutions to meet their Safety, Savings, and Sustainability goals. The Company distributes an extensive product offering of lubricants, coolants, metalworking fluids, equipment, auto-lube and filtration systems, and contamination control devices backed by unmatched technical expertise and services.

Rising crude oil inventories, lower than expected economic growth in China, the eurozone debt crisis, geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East, disappointing job numbers in the US, and other macro and microeconomic issues have battered crude oil price over the past few months. In fact, for the first time in seven months, the price of WTI fell below $100 a barrel and Brent also took a beating. So where does it go from here?

Whereas JobbersWorld is certainly no authority on the price of crude, nor have we been gifted with any divine vision about what's to come, we do have a clear line of site as to where we are and what many in the industry are thinking.

As to where we are, in short, the price of crude was relatively stable in the last quarter of 2011 and first quarter of 2012; then it ramped up in the second quarter of 2012. This resulted in a bump in the price of base oil and consequently the price of finished lubricants in the second quarter of 2012. But just when most expected finished lubricant price increases would be announced in response to the rising price of crude and base oil, the floor started to breakaway on the price of crude.

This leaves us with an elephant in the room, or maybe two. One being about how sticky the most recent round of finished lubricant price increases will be shall crude continue to fall. But, the second elephant in the room is arguably the largest. This is the elephant that many consider the matriarch, the one that has historically lead the charge. To the surprise of many, beyond not leading the charge in this most recent round of price increases, this elephant has yet to move when all the others have.  

One has to wonder, is this elephant smarter, does it have a better memory about the ups and downs in crude, base oil, and lube pricing, or is there another matriarch in the making?    

The GROWMARK Lubricants manufacturing facility in Council Bluffs, Iowa, has achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification, signifying quality control of all business processes.

"The certification process looks at our entire business, from the moment an order is placed, through manufacturing, shipping, and final delivery," said Makayla Umphreys, inventory and production manager. "We now have a plan in place to make sure we meet customer expectations every step of the way."

The certification comes on the heels of a major renovation at the facility, which increased storage space and updated the laboratory with state-of-the-art equipment. An open house will be held later this summer.

Motul® announces the launch of MC Care™, a comprehensive line of care and maintenance products specifically formulated for motorcycle, ATV and powersports users.  MC Care includes 18 products (nine that are new), which it says "revolutionize the way you care for your motorcycle."

MC Care is coded in four different categories, the items in each category then numbered for ease-of-use and reordering (for example, "M4" for new Hands Clean):

A - Air Filter Maintenance (Filter Clean, Filter Oil and new Filter Oil Spray.)

C - Chain Maintenance (Chain Clean, Chain Lube Road/Off-Road/Factory Line for sport bikes, and new Chain Paste.)

E - External Care (Moto Wash, Wash & Wax, Shine & Go, new Insect Remover, new Scratch Remover, new Chrome & Aluminum Polish, and new Perfect Seat.)

M - Motorcyclist & Equipment Care (new Helmet Clean, new Perfect Leather and new Hands Clean.)

Motul is recognized worldwide for its quality and advanced formulations resulting in optimum performance and longevity.  The 150-year-old brand pioneered the formulation of 100-percent synthetic lubricants, including its popular 300V range with ester technology.