Historic Omaha

ANDERSON
AMOCO
FOOD SHOPS
✧
Above: Standard Station at Thirtieth and
Dodge Street, 1963.
Below: Standard Station at Seventy-second
and Dodge Street, 1967.
Anderson Amoco has deep roots and a long
history in the Omaha community. In 1952,
eighteen-year-old Dwight Anderson, the
oldest of four brothers, established the very
first Anderson Service Station at the
intersection of Saddle Creek and Farnam as a
full-service gasoline and automotive repair
facility with one outside rack and two pumps.
A vending machine dispensed five-cent candy
bars. Brothers Bob, Ray Jr. and Warren
worked several years with Dwight before
striking out on their own to operate stations.
Growth was steady, but changes in the
petroleum retailing industry required
adaptation to survive. The Anderson brothers
were risk takers and had good business
acumen. The business, previously focused on
pumping gasoline and repairing automobiles,
began to change when new laws were enacted
in 1961 that allowed customers to dispense
their own fuel at the pumps. Prior to this, fullservice
stations were found everywhere.
When profit margins became lower, many
stations went out of business. Higher gasoline
taxes combined with fuel-efficient cars had
made the market more competitive. The law
became a catalyst for change in an industry
that is still evolving. Since 1952, fifteen
locations, some more successful than others,
were tried over the years. Ray and Dwight left
for Orlando in 1972 to open a Shell and
Amoco Station, respectively. Dwight stayed
and Ray returned, as the area was not growing
as quickly as had been projected. Ray
returned to the Seventy-second and Dodge
station and later operated three more stations
on Dodge Street.
The convenience store concept first appeared
in 1979 and Ray had the foresight to join the
revolution. A service station at Ninth and Dodge
was converted to a convenience store, but did
not play well with the public, and was switched
back to a full-service unit. But they learned from
their mistakes and kept growing. By 1981, when
Anderson Amoco was incorporated as Ray
Anderson, Inc., the market had begun to focus
on convenience and high volume gasoline and
grocery sales. A unit was converted at Fiftieth
and Dodge, but still looked like a service station
and failed to meet expectations. It was not until
1988 that the first successful convenience store,
a Food Shop, was opened at 140th and West
Center Road.
There is little substitute for experience and
long-term planning. R. A. Inc. does their
homework before going into any area. City
HISTORIC OMAHA
150