- Ernie Giannecchini grew up in the Central Valley town of Stockton and wanted to give something back to his community by lowering gas prices before the holidays, when fuel costs generally spike
- The former attorney has owned the store and gas station for more than 45 years, and he says his customers tell him the discounted prices really help them out around the holidays
- “Some of them say it really helps them out to buy some extra gifts for their kids or something a little bit nicer,’’ he tells PEOPLE
Ernie Giannecchini is doing more than helping fill gas tanks, he’s also fueling the holiday spirit in his community.
While on the phone to PEOPLE, he’s working the counter and getting verbal and physical high-fives from his customers, thanking him for helping them out during the holidays.
“I just decided to try to lower my prices as low as I could in the spirit of gratitude for all my loyal customers of the last 45 years,” says Giannecchini, 76. “I’ve had customers throughout the year saying thank you, up to that customer who was here just a few minutes ago.”
Located in the Central Valley farmlands, about the midpoint between Sacramento and San Francisco, his customers often commute between the larger cities for work. A few coins difference between Ernie’s prices and corporate gas stations make a big impact on their bottom line.
“The spirit of Christmas is the spirit of peace and giving and positive thinking,” Giannecchini says. “And when we can do that, that’s what it’s all about. You see smiles on kids’ faces, it is great to see them happy.”
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He says he used to play Santa every Christmas “until I didn’t need a pillow anymore to play Santa,” he says with a jolly chuckle. “I also played Santa for family and friends for their kids. It was always fun to see their reaction. And in a sense, I see the same reaction right now by somewhat playing Santa,” he adds.
The popular Ernie’s Country Store has been known for generations as the place to go for gas, groceries and a great Italian deli. Giannecchini, who is fluent in both Italian and Spanish, easily transitions between different languages in his multi-cultural community — and his Italian-inspired store offers pastas, sauces and, during the holidays, panettone, the traditional Christmas bread.
He says his family didn’t have very much growing up, so the little Italian chocolates and amaretto cookies were special to them during Christmas.
“We didn’t get them other times of the year,” he says.
So it warms his heart to see his customers at his “best deli west of Italy” spend their gas savings on something special at his old-fashioned country store. “They feel like they’ve got it for free because right across the street, it’s sometimes a dollar more a gallon,” Giannecchini says.
He says the price gap varies, and depends a lot on his gas suppliers, who have tried to cut him a break to pass on to his customers. Currently, he sells regular gas at $3.49 a gallon, compared to the close by Chevron station at $4.39 and Shell station at $4.30.
“It’s been like being Santa Claus in a sense, or the turkey for Thanksgiving,” he says. “It feels really good to be able to do that.”
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The son of Italian immigrants says he knows full well the financial pinch that happens during the holidays.
“Some of them say it really helps them out to buy some extra gifts for their kids or something a little bit nicer,’’ Giannecchini says. “And if they are (commuting) back and forth to the Bay Area, they are saving quite a bit of money.”
He says a couple of people have told him they’ve had some medical expenses and this has helped them out tremendously. “That’s very touching to know that while people are hurting because of additional expenses, this has saved them a bit,” Giannecchini says.
And he says owning his general store has given him much more pleasure than his days as a public defender. He grew up locally, attended college at UC Davis and graduated from their Italian campus before attending law school.
“I didn’t like the justice system, so I decided to quit,” Giannecchini says. “I took over my cousin’s business right before the gas crunch.”
So in 1979, he lowered his prices and got more customers. And loyal customers. His parents are gone now and he says he feels his employees and his customers are his family now.
“People ask when are you going to retire. Well, people keep me going and make me feel young,” Giannecchini says. “I could have retired several years ago and then I think, what am I going to be doing if I retire? After this, I almost felt like putting on my old Santa outfit.”
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