Star Oil Ghana CEO, Philip Tieku, says his company’s success is proof that low fuel prices do not mean poor quality.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, November 6, he said Star Oil has become Ghana’s leading oil marketing company because it takes concrete steps to protect customers and uphold integrity at every level of its operations.
“The jury is out there. The large majority of customers are buying from Star Oil, and that’s why we are number one. It’s obvious that we are doing something very right,” he said.
According to him, Star Oil’s strength lies in “how we protect quality tangibly by the things we’ve done in the supply chain.”
He explained that the company has systems that ensure customers are not cheated at the pump, using tools that detect and prevent tampering.
“We ensure that customers are not cheated at the pump by using tangible means to investigate and ensure that our attendants cannot do that. And if they do that, there’s evidence to show,” he said.
Tieku noted that this accountability culture has made dishonest practices rare at Star Oil stations. Beyond fuel dispensing, the company also engages customers directly after service to confirm satisfaction and address concerns.
“Our ability to engage customers post-service and make sure that they have assurance that they receive the right product, the right quantity, etc., and if there are real issues, transparently engage them on that, for me, is our strength,” he added.
He said these consistent measures have helped the company disprove the long-held notion that low fuel prices mean low quality.
“If that means that we’ve made nonsense of the whole price versus quality issue, I think that should be it,” he remarked.
Mr. Tieku explained that the perception linking cheaper prices to substandard products is a relic of the past, pushed by certain interest groups.
“That perception is one that, unfortunately, historically, in Ghana, has been pushed by some marketing interest groups,” he said.
He added that weak corporate governance in the past allowed fuel smuggling and poor quality products to thrive, but those issues cannot be used to judge firms like Star Oil today.
“Historically, we’ve had very poor corporate governance structures in the industry. That is why you can get a smuggled product into a station and compromise on quality,” he explained.
He said Star Oil’s performance and customer loyalty show that the company has built a brand that combines affordability with integrity.
“You cannot be growing at the pace we are growing year on year, retaining your customers year on year, and be selling inferior products,” he stressed.