The Story of Spirit®
The Petroleum Marketers Oil Company, LLC (PMOCO) and the Spirit® brand were created in 2002 in response to profound changes in the late 1990s in the petroleum refining and marketing industries. Major oil refiners were merging and consolidating at an unprecedented rate, causing significant reduction in available brands and sources of supply. At the same time, the major refiner brands were increasing their volume, supply and imaging requirements. Petroleum marketers found it difficult to brand locations and stay competitive under such conditions.
In 2000, the Petroleum Marketers Assocation of America (PMAA) formed a committee to explore the possibility of creating a national branding effort solely to help marketers. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and in 2002 PMAA passed a resolution to establish PMOCO, a for-profit LLC whose mission was to create, own and operate a national brand, the Spirit® brand. PMAA holds majority interest in PMOCO, and profits are shared among PMAA’s member state associations. PMOCO is managed by a seven-member national committee of marketers, state association executives and the PMOCO President.