West Des Moines Grocery Stores Offer an Antidote for Pain at the Pump

As fuel prices continue to rise — $3.67 at the pump for mid-grade ethanol — Iowa-based Hy-Vee’s legendary “helpful smile in every aisle” just got a lot broader.

Only the smile’s at the gas pump, now, where grocery shoppers can get as much as 10 cents off a gallon of fuel by showing the clerk a supermarket receipt.

What's your best tip to improve gas mileage? Tell us in comments.

Discounts vary from store to store at the prerogative of the manager, said Hy-Vee spokeswoman Ruth Comer.

At Westlakes Hy-Vee at 1725 Jordan Creek Parkway in West Des Moines, for example, the per-gallon discount is 10 cents on Sundays and Wednesdays. It’s 3 cents per gallon on all other days.

But at the West Des Moines Hy-Vee store at 555 S. 51st St., the discount is 6 cents per gallon on Tuesdays and 3 cents per gallon every other day, with the exception of Thursday. On that day, consumers get 9 cents a gallon off with the presentation of a $30 receipt from any Hy-Vee supermarket in the eight states where the grocery chain has a presence.

So that means if you shop at the Hy-Vee stores in Urbandale, Johnston, Ankeny, or any other city without a Hy-Vee gas station, a $30 grocery receipt can be presented for a discount at the 51st Street store.

Michael Jackson, a clerk there, said that on Tuesdays and Thursdays, all 24 pumps are busy from the time the gas station opens at 5 a.m. until it closes at 11 p.m.

“It’s a little slow today because it’s raining,” he said Tuesday afternoon. “But when the sun comes out, we’ll get busy again.”

The 51st Street store also offers a 5-cent discount for cash, check and gift card purchases. Debit cards aren’t the same as cash, Jackson said, because the store must pay an electronic processing charge, just as it would with a credit card purchase.

John Fangman, assistant manager at the Westlakes store, said his experience is similar.

“We’re seeing a lot of traffic on Sundays and Wednesdays,” Fangman said.

Comer, the Hy-Vee corporate spokeswoman, said redemption of the discounts closely follows rises in gas prices. The promotion, in place at Hy-Vee’s 100 gas stations coupled with its supermarkets, is designed to build customer loyalty.

It appears to be working.

“As gas prices go up, we’re seeing more and more people,” Comer said.

She said the grocery chain is able to offer the discounts because it has its own fuel purchasing department.

“With close to 100 stations, we’re able to do our own fuel purchasing, so we’re watching prices full time and constantly trying to get the best price,” she said. “Because it's a promotional tactic for the supermarkets, we have to make sure that we’re at a competitive price before the discount is applied.”