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said quietly, “I think we’ve been lucky.”
When reminded that it’s hard to be
lucky for almost 50 years, he got a little
more speci;c.
“We try not to be ;ashy, but to give
good value to the customer and to treat
our employees well. We have a truly
great team of employees. And while
we’ve gotten to be a bigger company,
we’ve never lost the little-company
mentality. Our belief is that average
is not good enough. And that is the
driving force for performance by our
employees.”
Phil also sees the company’s diversi-
;cation as a huge advantage both now
and in the future.
“We are positioned to grow and
prosper no matter how the industry
develops. I have often described our
company as being a mile wide and an
inch deep. That sounds like a negative,
but it’s not at all. What I mean is that
we have so much diversity. We don’t
exist just on equipment sales or labor
sales or even retail fuel activities. We
also are doing DEF, point of sale, car
wash and construction.
“And we have a healthy diversity in
our markets, too,” Phil said. “Kansas
City, for example, is somewhat of a
sophisticated urban environment.
Enid and Hutchison happen to be very
agriculturally based. And Manhattan,
Wichita and Topeka have their own
;avor as well.”
Phil also sees the
tight relationship
among Double
Check’s six of;ces
as a big plus. “Our
branches are close
enough geographi-
cally that, when
necessary, we can
pitch in and help each other out. The
average retail site today requires a lot
of fuel tanks and islands. You can’t
go out there with one or two guys—
you’ve got to have a signi;cant work-
force. We can do those types of jobs
anywhere in our territory, without
keeping a full crew at each and
every branch.”
LOOKING AHEAD
While the 50–50 ownership split
worked well, Phil is pleased with the
recent buyout of his partner.
“It was just time. Ronnie is 76
and was ready to get out. I’m 61 and
excited about growing the business.
So now, I’m all in. I have to continue
to make it perform. And really, even
though Ronnie has stepped aside, I
We’re betting the new partnership
will work just as well as the old one.
—Rick Long
strategy that now helps de;ne Double
Check ;rst kicked off.
“Tri-State had a small branch in
Topeka, Kan. So that branch came
into Double Check in 1995 when
we merged the two companies,”
said Phil. “That same
year, we also bought
Carter Equipment,
Double Check’s
expansion continued
steadily after that. “In
