BP Oil: Serving Plymouth since 1992
Beth Walesiewicz has been manager of the BP gas station in downtown Plymouth for 10 months after having 40 years of experience working in a gas station. The BP location is not an independently owned and operated location and is part of the Bellman Oil chain family. Although the gas station may not be independently family owned, family values are certainly a priority for Walesiewicz.
The Plymouth location for the BP gas station was purchased by Bellman Oil in 1992. Prior to being the BP gas station, it was a service station for automobiles. The Bellman Oil company originally began in the 1970’s right in Bremen, IN with founder Jim Bellman
and has since become a state-wide family owned chain owning and operating 12 stores and supplying over 65 gas stations. Bellman Oil’s company focus is, ‘Our goal is to exceed your expectations in providing affordable petroleum solutions.’
This BP location employs seven staff members, all of which are ‘absolutely amazing’ according to Walesiewicz. Walesiewicz has only replaced two of the original staff members in her time as manager with the rest staying and improving the overall quality of the location. Ten months is not a lot of time in which to make huge improvements, but Walesiewicz has witnessed the addition of the stone pillars on the gas station pump canopy as well as a new canopy. Walesiewicz laughs and says, “We have done a lot of cleaning.”
As manager of the gas station, Walesiewicz tries to implement a ‘homey’ feel for her customers and staff. Walesiewicz states, “I want it to feel like home. I want you to walk in and just feel like home. I want it to be clean, I want us to be friendly, I don’t want anyone to feel like they are walking into a hostile environment when they walk into our store.”
As for why Walesiewicz believes the Plymouth community should support the BP location, Walesiewicz states, “We are definitely friendly. Everyone that is here that works here is Plymouth oriented so we value our community. Yes it is a chain but it is not like other chains. What I have discovered through my time working here is that while it is a part of the Bellman Oil chain, I get to have control over my store, it is my store. That lets me have control over how it all feels.”
This BP store can be found at 423 N Michigan St, in Plymouth, Ind.