People Are the Most Valuable Asset to Any Business

Promoting and Advancing Petroleum Marketing, Retail Grocery, and Convenience Stores in West Virginia

Driving Local Business and Community Growth Across West Virginia

Our Purpose and Commitment

OMEGA is a West Virginia-based organization dedicated to supporting and advancing the business interests of the state’s petroleum marketing, retail grocery, and convenience store industries.

As a network of over 225 locally owned businesses, OMEGA actively promotes cooperation, advocates for favorable legislation, and provides education and resources to its members. With over 50,000 employees, OMEGA members significantly contribute to the state’s economy, generating more than 10% of all state taxes and supporting local communities through scholarships, charitable donations, and civic involvement.

OMEGA is committed to fostering industry growth while serving West Virginians with essential services like fuel, food, and convenience.

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Join a Community that Champions, Connects, and Elevates!

Your Essential Connection in West Virginia

OMEGA offers three types of membership: Convenience Store Members, Petroleum Marketer Members, and Grocer Members, all of which play a vital role in providing fuel, food, and essentials across West Virginia. As a liaison with state and national agencies, OMEGA works closely with organizations like NACS, PMAA, FMI, and the N.G.A. to advocate on behalf of its members.

We keep members informed through newsletters, legislative updates, an online resource hub, and educational seminars. Additional member benefits include access to the Encova Workers’ Compensation Discount Program and participation in our annual Trade Expo and fundraising efforts for children’s charities. OMEGA is here to support, advocate, and enhance the success of our industry members.

I often hear our members asking how do food retailers meet the challenge to identify, recruit, train, and retain top talent? David Smith, president and CEO of Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. and co-chair of Future Leaders eXperience, says it’s with a very focused human resource strategy. I spoke with Smith recently on why people are the most valuable asset to any business. Without teammates, operations can’t take care of the needs of their fellow members or customers. It’s a collaborative effort shaped by executive leadership teams and it covers every area of today’s food retail operation.

By:  Dagmar Farr, Chief Member Relations Officer and Senior Vice President, Membership and Education, Food Marketing Institute <img src="https://www.fmi.org/images/default-source/photos-for-staff-use/produce/20171205-fmi-store-shoot-0170r-lowres.tmb-large-350-.jpg?sfvrsn=7ad5786e_2" data-displaymode="Thumbnail" alt="20171205-FMI-Store Shoot-0170r-LowRes" title="20171205-FMI-Store Shoot-0170r-LowRes" style="float: right; margin: 10px;" /> I often hear our members asking how do food retailers meet the challenge to identify, recruit, train, and retain top talent? David Smith, president and CEO of Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. and co-chair of Future Leaders eXperience, says it’s with a very focused HR strategy. As a member of FMI’s Wholesaler Committee and Wholesaler Share Group, I spoke with David recently on why people are the most valuable asset to any business. Without teammates, operations can’t take care of the needs of their fellow members or customers. It’s a collaborative effort shaped by executive leadership teams and it covers every area of today’s food retail operation.  Smith continues, “The foundation for being a great place to work is the environment and culture of the organization. It is our leadership and teammates that form the environment and culture at AWG and articulate what we stand for. We define our core values as Humility, Accountability, Transparency, and Serving (H.A.T.S.) and this is our foundation for all employees' engagement and performance.” Humility -We encourage and expect genuine collaboration, involvement and teamwork. We are active listeners that embrace retailer, employee, and vendor feedback to continuously strengthen our service to all. It’s a mindset.  Accountability- Together, we are unyielding in delivering on our commitments and achieving results. Our employees are innovators and solution oriented; empowered to exceed member expectations. Transparency– Transparency means that our members, employees and vendors clearly know our business practices, and we insist on honesty, openness, consistency, and completely ethical dealings, even when it’s difficult. Serving – It is our passion to serve our constituents, members, employees and vendors, and continually improve our level of support.  In addition to defining, communicating, and living out AWG’s Core Values as expectations, the company has worked to align its total compensation, rewards and benefits strategy with its business goals.  “We have tackled the issues of pay, teammate work flexibility, alternate work hours and shifts, technology-enabled productive employee shift-swapping, engagement and feedback, employee programs and recognition,” explained Smith. “Our overall offerings to our teammates are very competitive throughout our operations and they all tie directly to performance for the benefit of our members.” AWG is also tapping into new avenues for great entry-level teammates, including a new apprenticeship program, as well as veteran outreach and recruitment, and more part-time jobs. Additionally, the company makes continuous improvement to encourage teammates and leaders to be creative and innovative. If employees find new and better ways to improve a process, AWG makes adjustments to evolve and focus on doing things well and always doing the right thing.  “We provide our teammates timely and constructive feedback and communication, as well as rewards and recognition. Our teammates have a voice and their voice matters in our plans and decisions. We have implemented a company-wide uniform teammate training and development program,” said Smith.   As a result, AWG has experienced higher teammate retention rates. The company surveys teammates annually for job satisfaction scores, and the result of the feedback influences its growth and improvement plans.  Smith added, “We are very proud of our workforce and feel well prepared for the future and our capability to take on significant growth.” <div style="text-align: left;"> Know a future leader? Invite them to attend FMI’s <a href="https://www.fmi.org/future-leaders">Future Leaders eXperience</a>, May 14 – 16 in St. Louis, Missouri. </div>

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Supporting West Virginia Communities

OMEGA members play a vital role in West Virginia, supporting communities through substantial tax contributions and a wide-reaching presence across the state. With over 55% of the population living in border counties, our members are dedicated to serving both local and regional needs. Beyond business, we’re proud to give back, having contributed over $3.1 million to children’s charities since 2003, reflecting our commitment to making a positive difference.