Eric Royse, CEO, RelaDyne

In an interview with Invest:, Eric Royse, CEO of RelaDyne, discussed the company’s growth through acquisitions, its relocation of headquarters to Houston, and its expanding role in lubricants, fuel, reliability services, and technical support. “Customers appreciate having a single partner that controls everything, from order placement through last-mile delivery,” Royse said.

What have been your top priorities since becoming CEO, and what opportunities do you see shaping RelaDyne’s next phase of growth?

RelaDyne is the largest seller of lubricants in North America and really the largest distributor in the world. We have only been around for 15 years, and we got to where we are through 67 acquisitions with three different owners during that time.

We built the company on strong local distributors with established customer relationships, product expertise, and regional capabilities. My challenge as CEO is taking those businesses and bringing them together under one culture, one mission, and one set of values while expanding brand partnerships and integrating best practices, systems, and processes.

My focus is to leverage our size and scale to bring more capabilities, brands, and products to customers, improve customer service, make the business more efficient, and increase profitability. Operational excellence, commercial excellence, and technology leadership are central to that effort.

What trends are having the biggest impact on your customers, and how are you adapting to serve those needs?

Customers expect distributors to help them minimize inventory while delivering products exactly when they need them, with high fill rates, trusted brands, technical expertise, and competitive pricing.

Scale allows us to do that efficiently. We have an unmatched portfolio of brands, inventory depth, and technical expertise. Beyond distributing fuel and lubricants, we provide engineering and technical services that help customers improve their operations.

What makes Houston important to RelaDyne’s long-term strategy?

Our Houston story is multifaceted. We partnered with Sun Coast Resources, a company that had served the Houston market for 40 years, supporting energy, agriculture, construction, and oil and gas. Acquiring Sun Coast significantly expanded our capabilities, particularly in emergency fuel response.

We decided, as of Jan. 1 of this year, to officially move our headquarters to Houston. Houston is where our industry is. Our supply partners, including the major energy companies, are here, and it is our largest individual market, even though we operate across the United States and in seven countries in Central America.

We also like the workforce. We have been able to recruit highly skilled executives, drivers, warehouse personnel, and other employees. Our Houston operations continue under the trusted Sun Coast name, now backed by the strength, resources, and capabilities of RelaDyne. 

How are technology, data analytics, and AI changing the services you provide?

Fuel and lubricant distribution has historically been reactive, but our products are critical infrastructure products. Customers cannot afford to run out.

We now have about 30,000 monitored tanks in the field, allowing us to manage inventory proactively, improve customer service, and optimize routing. Every delivery vehicle is equipped with telematics so we can improve safety, productivity, and service.

Customers can also order and manage their accounts online through our customer portal, and we are expanding predictive ordering capabilities. Internally, we have an AI task force identifying opportunities to apply machine learning across functions such as invoice matching, accounts payable, and other business processes.

Which parts of the business are seeing the fastest growth, and where do you see the greatest opportunity?

Lubricants remain our largest business and biggest opportunity. Fuel will likely grow the fastest because we intend to expand those capabilities into more markets.

Our long-term vision is to provide the same capabilities across every market we serve. That includes lubricants, fuel, emergency response, and reliability services such as machinery inspections, testing, flushing, and technical support.

We also see significant opportunity in offering customers one source for products, logistics, and technical expertise. Customers appreciate having a single partner that controls everything, from order placement through last-mile delivery.

What are your priorities for future growth?

We will continue growing through acquisitions. We have capital to deploy and an experienced internal team that can source, execute, and integrate acquisitions.

We look for opportunities that increase market density, expand capabilities, strengthen brand partnerships, or add new products and services. Alongside acquisitions, we also have substantial organic growth opportunities through market expansion, national accounts, and broader adoption of our DuraMAX and Drydene brands.

Bringing the organization together under common processes will make us more efficient and better positioned to win new customers.

What gives you confidence about the industry and your long-term outlook?

Our products serve a highly diversified customer base. Even if automotive demand changes because of electrification or longer oil change intervals, industrial activity and infrastructure investment continue to create demand for fuel and lubricants.

We see opportunities through organic growth, acquisitions, and expansion across Latin America. We are bullish on the market, but realistic. We like the reliability, steady growth, and consistent demand in our industry. As our scale grows, we believe our opportunities to gain market share will grow as well.

What challenges are most important for the industry today?

We are living through a dynamic period from a supply chain perspective. Fuel prices remain volatile, which directly affects our operating costs, and lubricants have faced additional disruptions because of supply constraints tied to the Middle East and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Those conditions have reduced supply and increased prices. They have also demonstrated the value of our platform. Because we have broad supplier relationships, we can adapt, secure alternative supply, maintain high fill rates, and keep customers informed about changing market conditions.