The tie-in between Shell and Kroger is being implemented nationwide, in areas where both have retail locations. That includes other cities in Tennessee.
"Nashville-area customers who shop at Kroger stores that don't have their own fuel centers will be able to redeem their fuel-rewards points at their nearest participating Shell stations," said Melissa Eads, the Nashville spokeswoman for Kroger.
"It's a complement to the program we already have," Eads said, "but while we have 61 Kroger stores in Middle Tennessee, only 36 have fuel centers. There are none in places like Green Hills, Hermitage, Belle Meade and Cool Springs."
Under the program, Kroger customers who sign up for fuel-rewards cards get 100 points for each $100 worth of purchases at the stores. Once the customer reaches 100 points, the fuel-rewards card can be used at either the Kroger fuel centers or participating Shell stations for a 10-cent discount per gallon, Eads said.
Not all Shell stations are in the program, said John Liveris, Shell's marketing-area manager for Nashville.
"There are a few that are independently owned, and some of them have chosen not to participate," he said.
But locations that will accept the Kroger cards will be well marked, Liveris said, and the clerks will even wear promotional shirts touting the program when it kicks off Monday morning.
The discount is available on all grades of fuel, as well as diesel, and applies to a single purchase for each 100 Kroger points, with a limit of 35 gallons per transaction, Eads said.
Here's how it works:
The read-out on a gas pump will ask whether the gas customer wants to use a Kroger fuel-rewards card, and if the customer says "Yes," then the full-size Kroger rewards card can be inserted into the station's credit-card reader to activate the discount, which is subtracted immediately at the pump.
If someone has only a small keychain card, the customer number can be keyed in at the pump, Eads said.
And if the customer doesn't have the card on hand, the alternate identification number may be keyed in, which is usually the telephone number the customer gave when signing up for the fuel-rewards card at a Kroger store.
Shell's own discount programs will be valid as well, Liveris said.
Those include a 5-cent rebate per gallon for Shell Platinum MasterCard holders who use the card for the fuel purchase, and 2 cents per gallon for customers who pay with the new Shell Saver Card, which works like a debit card at the pump.
Shell's rebates show up on monthly statements rather than as instant discounts at the time of purchase, however.
More details of the Kroger-Shell program can be found at www.kroger.com and www.shell.us/kroger.
Contact Tennessean automotive writer G. Chambers Williams III at 615-259-8076 or cwilliams1@tennessean.com.
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