What has been touted as the most exciting project for the Texaco brand in 10 years has now come to fruition in Cardiff. St Mellons Service Station on Newport Road has became one of the first locations worldwide for the launch of Chevron’s new Texaco forecourt image.

The company has described the new design as having a more modern, fresher look, with improved lighting and a colour change in canopy lettering from red to white.

The new Texaco image is part of the company’s Shining Star programme which aims to build on the strengths of Texaco’s 90-year heritage in the UK, and cement Texaco’s reputation as a premium brand. The improvement in the service station image is part of a comprehensive programme which includes investment in the company’s facilities and fuels, supported by an integrated marketing campaign, according to Brian Worrall, Chevron’s UK country chairman. He said enhancements had also been made to the support package offered to independent Texaco retailers to help them to meet the needs of their local customers.

"With our refinery in Pembroke, fuel terminal in Cardiff, and more than 130 Texaco service stations and fuel distributors in Wales, we are one of the largest private-sector employers in the principality, and so it made sense that Cardiff would be one of the key locations for the launch of our new Texaco site image." More than 25 sites in and around Cardiff are now sporting the new image. Feedback received over the coming months will determine the next stage of the rollout.

Forecourt specialist CFG Limited a family-run business based in Cinderford, Gloucestershire worked with Chevron on the project. Managing director Bernard Wright said: "Having worked with Chevron for the past eight years on the manufacture and installation of the Texaco forecourts, we’re very pleased to have been approached to work with them again. We worked very hard on the electrical specifications for the new-look lighting within the canopies and pole signs. In the evening the imagery really comes into its own."

Already the refreshed look of the sites is going down well with customers who appreciate the clearer signage and brighter lighting, according to Kurt Williams, owner of St Mellons Service Station: "We’ve had a lot of people comment positively on the new look for our site, and there’s definitely been an increase in customers since we introduced the new brand image."