How do you usually pick a gas station when you need to fill up your tank? Most times, it comes down to location and how expensive it is. But for a loyal base of customers on Milwaukee’s South Side, their only factor is going to support Faisal Bhimani. He owns the BP and Citgo gas stations across the street from one another on Howard and Clement Avenues. His customers return not because of prices, but because of the community he’s built.
While Bhimani officially became a gas station owner in 2007, it's a business he's known all his life. His father, along with two uncles, started in the business back in 1989. Bhimani first started working as a cooler boy while going through school and eventually got trained in more aspects of the business and "never looked back."
At first glance you may think that running a gas station is a straight-forward business, but Bhimani says there are a lot of misconceptions about the work. "A lot of customers actually think whatever we take is all we make... and you know the funniest thing is that a lot people actually think that we pay no taxes," he says. "[I want to] make it clear, we pay just as much taxes as other [businesses] and it is a very stressful job."
Bhimani also notes that while everyone with a car needs gas, that's not a guarantee that customers will always come to your station. "So you have to have that extra kicker in order for the customers to come into your store," he adds.
That "extra kicker" for Bhimani, is making connections with the people who come into his station — and he was inspired by example.
"This was about like 15, 16 years ago when I went to this gym on 76th and Layton, I went into Speedway. And this guy, couple times that I saw him he got to know my name," he recalls. "And I kind of followed that ... it kind of made me keep going back to that Speedway because he knew my name, so now when I try doing stuff, everything, I know customers by name, and I think that makes a huge difference."
In addition to knowing his regulars by name, Bhimani has also built a community through acts of kindness, such as giving out free food and drinks, offering space outside for fundraisers, and giving out free gas for seniors on limited incomes. No matter the scale of outreach, generosity has been central to his operations for more than a decade.
"My dad always used to tell me that if you're in a position to help people and if you don't help people, you're not a human being, right? I mean, the inner soul should tell you to help other people," says Bhimani.
If he didn't see any positive response from the community, Bhimani admits he might not have continued his efforts. "Customers appreciating it kind of drives me to keep doing it over and over and over. And now ... the kids that used to do the lemonade stand when I first started, now they're in college. So it's become a tradition there in Bay View and Saint Francis," he says.
One major period that impacted his business for nearly a year was major construction that shut down Howard Avenue. Instead of going to a gas station that was more accessible, Bhimani says his customers went out of their way to support him.
"There was a time where all three entrances were about to be blocked and this neighborhood fought for me, they were able to have one of the entrances open. Even though I did see a little drop, these guys were like circling around the block and finding ways to come to my gas station. I still get goosebumps [thinking about it]," he recalls.
"If it wasn’t for this community I probably would’ve been done four, five, six years ago to just to give more time to my family," adds Bhimani. "But this community is my family, so I want to have both sides of the family."
Faisal Bhimani was featured in the November issue of Milwaukee Magazine in the article, “Convenience and Community.” You can follow Bhimani's updates on what community events or giveaways are happening through the Bay View Town Hall and St. Francis Town Hall Facebook pages.
