Not only were the Frasers named Best Independent with Nine Sites or Less at the Forecourt Trader of the Year Awards back in September, they also picked up the overall category award for Best Neighbourhood site for their Brize Norton Service Station in Oxfordshire.

Brothers Robert and Hugh are looking forward to the challenges that 2008 will bring and will continue to concentrate on customer service, training and marketing.

Meanwhile, one of the company’s top priorities is to continue to incentivise customers to join its Car Wash Club.

Robert says: "We’re fully aware of many customers’ perceptions of hand car washing and intend to ensure that they are left in no doubt of the benefits of using our modern car washes that offer guaranteed scratch-free washing and a superb finished product."

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=== Oil company/supermarket-owned/managed ===

Alan Troy runs the Spar/BP Milburn site in Coleraine, Northern Ireland, and he’s so proud of being an award winner he displays a huge banner over the entrance of his shop telling the world! "We won this award in 2006 and we were delighted to win it again in 2007," says Alan.

"We put the banner up first in 2006 saying we’d won - and we added to it again in September. It’s a 10ft x 3ft banner so you can’t really miss it."

Alan puts the site’s success down to attention to detail, saying eveything is kept spotlessly clean and the shop is always well stocked.

He adds: "We’re a 24-hour site but we serve through the hatch at night. We’re lucky enough to have a night crew, so by the time we open in the morning the shelves are fully stocked and the shop is ready to go."

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=== oil company owned/franchisee operated ===

Alfred Savarimuthu runs the Murco Costcutter Wood Street Service Station in Barnet, Hertfordshire, and says the secret to the site’s success is making sure customers always get service with a smile.

"Our staff make this a successful business, most of our customers live locally and I think they appreciate the friendly atmosphere of the shop," he says. "We’re so happy to have won this award, it’s a great title to have under our belts." The site is small but colourful and welcoming and has a hot food-to-go Bake ’n’ Bite offering, with lunchtime shoppers dropping in for sausage rolls and other snacks.

"We might make a few changes next year, but nothing too drastic," says Alfred. "I think things are working pretty well as they are and I’m happy with that."

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=== Independent with 10 sites or more ===

Mark Cox is operations manager at Le Riches, which runs the Checkers Xpress network in Jersey in the Channel Islands. The company’s Five Oaks site scored a hat-trick at the Awards ceremony in September. As well as being named the Best Independent with 10 sites or more in the Neighbourhood category, it won Best Food-to-go and Best Display of Chilled Food.

Mark says staff are thrilled to have won, especially as this is the site’s first year of trading after a huge refurb which saw it go from a 800sq ft shop to a modern 3,000sq ft convenience store offering food-to-go such as pizza, jacket potatoes and Bake ’n’ Bite snacks from 6.30pm to 11pm.

Mark adds: "We’re looking forward to entering the awards this year, hope-fully with an even better offering!"