How Daigle Oil Company’s community focus continues to drive growth
Daigle Oil Company (DOC) was founded by Guy Daigle in 1955. COO Carter Vaillancourt shares an overview of the company’s storied history, and how it has grown from humble beginnings: “He started out with just a single fuel truck around the Fort Kent area of Maine delivering heating oil and kerosene, and a few years later, he built his first gasoline station. It has always been a family-owned and operated company. The founder’s son, Rick, along with my father, Dan, eventually took over the business as owners, and ran it for several years, and under their leadership we saw continuous expansion through acquisition and product diversification.
“What started out as one man’s vision delivering heating oil around the local area has now grown to have 160 employees covering all of Northern Maine. We have
five home heating divisions delivering various liquid fuels, staffed with full HVAC departments, as well as eight retail motor fueling sites. We also have six car washes and seven remote diesel fueling sites, which primarily cater to the logging industry; they’re very remote locations along the western border of Maine.”
Another significant evolution occurred to DOC under the leadership of Rick Daigle and Dan Vaillancourt; as when they approached retirement, they didn’t want to simply sell the business. Carter goes on to describe the process and benefits of DOC becoming an employee-owned business instead: “It was a big move for the company because up until that point it had been owned by just two shareholders. Those owners, Rick and Dan, wanted to retire, but they also wanted the business to carry on their vision, to remain local, to keep all of their employees; essentially, our independence. They created an ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) for the business.
“The benefits have evolved over time. At this point, each employee is considered a beneficial owner of the company and has a piece of the pie, so they’re directly responsible for their own success as well as the business. In return, they are rewarded for their work and dedication because they have that investment with their name tied to it. It generates much better motivation and morale; the better the company does, the better our employees do. Our customers appreciate this structure as well as it helps us maintain our strong local identity rather than feeling like they are dealing with a large corporate company.
“The employees that we have are undoubtedly the key driver of our success. Many have been with us for 30 to 35 years or more and have really dedicated their lives to the company. Every one of us will get phone calls day and night and will do what it takes to make the company successful and service the customers. All of our employees are very willing to go the extra mile to make things happen. We foster a good environment to make it enjoyable; it definitely still has a family feel to it.”
Superior service
Carter then moves on to the approach embraced by DOC to ensure it provides the highest quality customer service possible: “Our philosophy is simple: see things from the customer’s point of view. This means that with everything we do, we consider how it impacts the customer. There are competitors offering the same products and services, so we differentiate ourselves through superior customer service.
“For example, we still provide a live phone service. Rather than an automated service like many companies use, we have real people answering calls and assisting customers. One feature that we also take pride in is follow-up service calls. Whenever we complete an HVAC service, within a day or two, a customer service representative will call the customer to check how the service went and ensure everything is working as it should, to make sure that they’re completely satisfied.
“Another service element that we pride ourselves on is at our retail gasoline stations. Unlike many gas stations today, we’re full-service, meaning we have an employee who will pump the gas, wash the windshield, and check the oil, enabling us to offer a higher level of service that sets us apart.
“Many of our retail motor fueling sites also feature automated car washes. In the last year, we’ve rebuilt one of our existing locations completely; it’s a brand-new tunnel car wash in the southernmost part of our territory. Further north in Maine, we have also constructed a new one from the ground up. We continue to expand our car wash segment, which helps complement the motor fueling business.”
Clean fuels future
Carter then reflects on how the business has responded to the growth trend in propane use: “It’s definitely been a growth factor for us in the last ten years. One of the things that’s driving it the most is the change in customer perspective. Propane is clean, versatile, and there is less market volatility, which offers more stable pricing.
“People want to use clean fuels and that continues to be a driving force. A lot of the new construction that we’re seeing now includes propane because of its versatility. It can fuel a central heating system – a generator, a cooking stove, a fireplace, and a variety of other appliances. It offers multiple different uses within the home.”
The trend towards cleaner fuels is something Carter anticipates continuing across the industry: “There’s a lot of focus on clean fuels and the overall evolution of them right now. Propane is very clean, but there’s also a lot of research and development being done on heating oil, biodiesel, renewable diesel, and other liquid energy that can meet carbon neutrality goals. I think that’s going to continue to evolve, where the type of fuels we use today may not be the same as ten years from now.” Carter concludes: “No matter how the energy landscape evolves, we will continue to embrace new products and provide quality service to our customers.”