Sustaining a Sibling Partnership
Founded in 1946, Chase Oil has served the greater Florence area as a gasoline distributor for more than seventy-five years. Now in its third generation of family ownership, Chase Oil supplies approximately seventy-seven sites affiliated with industry giants such as AMOCO, BP, Shell, and 76. In addition, the company recently diversified its portfolio by launching Scrubby’s Car Wash. The business’s success in each generation can be attributed to an entrepreneurial mindset, a willingness to revise core business procedures, and, equally important, a cooperative partnership among family owners.
The First and Second Generations
In 1945, while enjoying breakfast at a local diner in Florence, Maitland Chase struck up a conversation with a representative from the American Oil Company (AMOCO). The AMOCO representative invited Maitland to establish a local distribution hub for AMOCO. Although Maitland already had a stable job in the heating and air conditioning industry, he saw a once-in-a-lifetime chance to join a high-growth industry and invested his life savings to start his own business.
Chase Oil opened in 1946 as a full-service AMOCO gas station where “bowtie-wearing, rag-in-the-back-pocket” attendants not only pumped gas but also cleaned windows, checked oil levels, and performed basic vehicle maintenance. Under Maitland's leadership, Chase Oil quickly expanded, growing to nearly 20 full-service gas stations. By the 1960s, his son, Maitland Jr., and son-in-law, Charles Howard Sr., had become deeply involved in the company. Their close work with Maitland over the years ensured a smooth leadership transition when he passed away in 1970.
In the late 1970s, the brothers led Chase Oil through a significant transformation, steering the company away from the traditional full-service model and toward the emerging trend of combining gas stations with convenience stores. This shift not only diversified their revenue but also improved profit margins by reducing operational costs, as it eliminated the need for attendants to pump gas and provide mechanical services. Their willingness to reinvent the business model demonstrated entrepreneurial initiative. Maitland Jr. and Charles Sr. understood that the key to long-term success lies in preserving the company’s core values without being constrained by specific business practices.
Transition to the Third Generation
In the late 1990s, as Maitland Jr. prepared to retire, Charles Sr. offered his sons, Charles Jr. and Chase, the chance to join the family business. Both had strong professional backgrounds—Charles Jr. in finance and Chase in sales—which equipped them to contribute meaningfully to Chase Oil. Because Maitland Jr. did not have children, it was natural for Chase Oil to continue the sibling-partnership structure into the third generation. However, Charles and Chase were informed that it was not a gift; they would first have to purchase their uncle’s shares. To avoid taking on external debt obligations, the parties agreed to an owner-financed deal. This approach allowed the brothers to "buy in" over time, earning their ownership stake through labor.
As they took on leadership responsibilities, Charles and Chase made two significant changes. First, they streamlined Chase Oil’s operations, shifting from day-to-day operations, such as running convenience stores and managing inventory, to wholesale gasoline distribution. By relying upon independent contractors to manage the convenience stores, Chase Oil has been able to expand the number of convenience stores from eleven to seventy-seven. Second, the brothers diversified Chase Oil’s investment portfolio by entering the car wash business. Scrubby’s Car Wash is a separate company that operates as a division of Chase Oil.
Sibling Partnership
Chase Oil’s success across generations demonstrates the potential strength of sibling partnerships in family businesses. While Maitland started the company and ran it for decades as the sole owner, the second and third generations successfully embraced a co-ownership governance model. (As used here, the term “partnership” refers to the equal sharing of ownership responsibilities; from a legal standpoint, Chase Oil is organized as a corporation, which means that those who hold an equity stake in the business are shareholders).
The partnership was not always easy for Charles and Chase, the third-generation owners. Until they learned how to work together, they were “constantly bumping into each other and stepping on each other’s toes.” Charles described running a business with a family member as an experience akin to marriage: “In a marriage, there’s a lot of give and take and there’s things that you both have to give on, . . . you just have to let it go for the greater good.”
The key to the brothers’ successful business partnership is a strong bond of trust. As Charles says of Chase, “I trust him immensely with everything he works on, and I think he would say the same for me, and that's our secret sauce.” Each brother focuses on his strengths—Charles in finance and Chase in sales—and they rely on each other to manage different aspects of the business. This complementary approach, combined with mutual respect, has allowed them to avoid conflicts that often undermine family partnerships.
Improving Operational Efficiencies
As the brothers sought to grow Chase Oil and Scrubby’s Car Wash, which, among other things, meant hiring more employees, they recognized a need for greater formality in their business practices. Previously, the company operated with a high level of informality typical of many family businesses. For example, raises were often given without formal reviews, and team meetings were infrequent. All significant decisions were made either by Charles or Chase.
To establish a better foundation for growth, Charles and Chase brought in a business consultant to help them implement employee management practices, such as regular team meetings and a systematic employee training process. They also learned from painful experiences. For example, a trusted long-term bookkeeper defrauded the company by issuing unauthorized checks. This incident prompted the brothers to put stronger financial safeguards in place, including separating financial responsibilities across multiple employees to prevent fraud. The company also relies on legal and financial advisors to navigate complex challenges in the oil and car wash industries, such as environmental regulations and property disputes.
Like many small businesses, Chase Oil has had to confront the growing threat of cyberattacks. In 2019, the company fell victim to a phishing scam that resulted in the fraudulent issuance of checks totaling nearly $400,000. The hackers manipulated emails to deceive the bookkeeper into issuing unauthorized checks, going as far as exploiting Charles’ absence during work travel to avoid detection. The scheme went undetected for nearly four months, until the company’s Chief Operating Officer identified a suspicious invoice. Fortunately, a recently purchased cyber insurance policy helped mitigate the financial loss, but the incident was a wake-up call. Since then, Charles and Chase have invested heavily in cybersecurity, working with outside experts to improve network security and conducting regular employee training sessions.
However, despite the added layers of formality, Charles and Chase continue to emphasize the value of maintaining the personal connections that make family businesses unique, particularly their relationships with customers, suppliers, and employees. For example, the son of an employee who had worked with the company for more than thirty years became the first college graduate in his family with the support of Charles and Chase. Today, the son is also part of the company, serving as a manger. Chase remarked, “And those are the little victories we get in the family business atmosphere.” Chase also makes a point of getting to know the managers who run Chase Oil’s convenience stores. He has been invited to attend family dinners and weddings and takes satisfaction in having built relationships founded on something more durable than mutual economic advantage.