All Analysis articles – Page 35
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Analysis
Dealers: the inside track
Texaco, Shell, Total and BP have emerged as the brands most favoured by independent dealers across the nation, according to a revealing study of the sector, ’Dealer Insite 2010’, conducted by VSM Research on behalf of Forecourt Trader magazine. Covering a representative cross-section of the independent dealer network ...
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Analysis
Make your voice heard
Retailers have been urged to keep up the pressure on MPs as the debate rages over the proposed increases in Business Rates. RMI Petrol said the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) had met with its representative, forecourt rating specialist MUA Property Services at the end of January, with another ...
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Analysis
A perfect storm
As we launched ourselves into a new year as well as a brand new decade you could have been forgiven for not cracking open the champers. With taxes and fuel prices on the rise, and motorists watching their mileage, many retailers have admitted to feeling gloomy, and have expressed trepidation ...
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Analysis
Under pressure
Brian Madderson has vowed to make the fight over business rates the top priority under his new leadership of RMI Petrol, (formerly known as the Petrol Retailers’ Association). He called for an urgent meeting to discuss the issue soon after becoming chairman of the association in November, and true to ...
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Analysis
Dark forces at work
The next two months will help shape the future of tobacco retailing. Retailers have until January to make their voices heard during the government’s consultation on plans to ban tobacco displays and vending machines in shops. This follows MPs last month voting in favour of prohibiting the display of tobacco ...
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Analysis
Hold the front page
The Association of News Retailing (ANR) has vowed to keep fighting for a review of the newspaper and magazine distribution industry following its disappointment at last month’s news that the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) would not be referring the sector to the Competition Commission. ANR managing director John Lennon ...
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Analysis
Fuming in the dark
Forecourt retailers in the Republic of Ireland have been living with the new tobacco display ban regulations since July 1. It’s early days yet, but a recent visit, care of Imperial Tobacco, revealed that they’re not best pleased. The backdrop to the till areas generally do not look good (the ...
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Analysis
The road ahead
The industry faces a "huge challenge" in trying to develop and supply the next generation of eco fuels, according to the latest Statistical Review from the UK Petrolem Industry Association (UKPIA). It says we can expect to see global energy demand rise by almost 50% in the next 20 years, ...
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Analysis
Differential derby
Soaring fuel prices kept forecourts in the headlines last month. The average price of petrol rose almost 4.98ppl between mid-May and mid-June, according to the latest AA Fuel Price Report, making it the second-highest monthly increase ever recorded - the rise was only two-thirds of a penny short of the ...
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Analysis
An appetite for success
Shoppers continued to develop a healthy appetite for food-to-go on forecourts last year, helping to boost sales in the sector and cut retailers’ reliance on tobacco sales. That’s according to the Evolution of Convenience Retailing report, published by the Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD), which found that food-to-go was the ...
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Analysis
Move over, Darling
While the consensus seemed to be that it was a pretty unspectacular Budget for petrol retailers, there have been some words of warning for the sector. Chancellor Alistair Darling’s announcement could be summed up as a few more pence on fuel, a couple of pence on tobacco and alcohol, and ...
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Analysis
Highly rated
Retailers have been given a last-minute reprieve over business rates, but have been warned that they will bear the brunt of further hikes that are due to be imposed in April 2010.On March 31, the Chancellor suddenly announced that a 5% increase, which had been due on April 1, would ...
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Analysis
Clamping catastrophe
When Kandasamy Nirmalan decided to make a stand against people using his London forecourt as a free car park he had no idea how much potential damage it would do to his business. But it resulted in a customer being ordered to pay £465, staging a sit-in and ...
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Analysis
Have your say
With the future of the Petrol Retailers’ Association (PRA) under review, the organisation could be looking at its first major shake up in years. Last month PRA director Ray Holloway revealedin Forecourt Trader that the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMIF) was conducting a business review of all the eight trade ...
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Analysis
Ashes to ashes
The government’s announcement on the tobacco display ban was met with shock and disbelief by the industry last month. Experts warned retailers they would end up shouldering the financial burden of a ’dark’ tobacco market, as well as having to deal with the other implications such as safety concerns in ...
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Analysis
Starting Over
It’s only a matter of weeks since GNE Group announced it had completed the sale of its fuel retailing subsidiary, Petrol Express.But GNE isn’t a company to rest on its laurels - it’s already back on the acquisition trail and says it’s got £50m to invest in its business. It ...
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Analysis
Easy does it...
What US retailer John MacDougall doesn’t know about running forecourts probably isn’t worth knowing. For four decades the businessman has worked to build up his mini empire, weathering any economic storms as well as the harsh winters in upstate New York. After buying out his original two partners of ...
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Analysis
Card sharp
A "huge sigh of relief" is how Petrol Retailers’ Assocation director, Ray Holloway, described the reaction around the dealer network to the recent Arval/BP agreement.He added: "It means Arval’s network of cards can be maintained. It’s a successful conclusion to the dispute and a step towards protecting a large part ...
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Analysis
Playing the trump card
Retailers got a nasty surprise in the post last month - a letter from BP announcing it was ending its agreement with Arval.And, according to some in the industry, the news also came as quite a shock to Arval. But will the fact that the UK’s biggest retail fuel supplier ...
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Analysis
Crunch time
If you’ve noticed your fuel sales are noticeably down on last year, you’re not alone. Retailers around the country are reporting a significant drop in volume - and those with sites in the north are seemingly the worst hit.With fuel prices hitting £1.19 for a litre of unleaded and a ...