All Forecourt Trader articles in December 2024
View all stories from this issue.
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InterviewUNDER THE SPOTLIGHT: 20 questions for forecourt consultant Ramsay MacDonald
Forecourt guru Ramsay MacDonald is well-known for consulting on major industry projects from the award-winning Essar Lea Gate site, to Oilfast’s unmanned fascia. But he has been just as busy behind the scenes over the past year getting to grips with the purchase of an electric car, visiting Japan, and celebrating 25 years of marriage with his wife Helen.
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NewsConsultation to restore 2030 ICE ban begins
Ministers have begun the process of reversing the previous government’s decision to delay the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars to 2035.
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OtherCOMMENT: Food to go, go, go in 2025
Deliver to car services for motorists charging their vehicles, micro stations that do away with the need for on-site kitchens, and using AI to reduce waste. These are some of the food to go trends that will make their mark in forecourts in 2025, predicts foodservice consultant Matt Cundrick.
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Industry FeatureReflecting on the road ahead
Six leading industry figures – Zuber Issa, Gordon Balmer, David Charman, Tom Buckley, Tom Highland, and Oliver Blake – share their aspirations for their businesses in 2025, and what they think the year ahead has in store for the industry in general.
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OtherMONEY TALK: Looking forward to 2025?
Expect more of the same when it comes to accusations of profiteering in the sector in 2025. However, from disruptive investors to all-electric forecourts, the industry could witness plenty change over the next 12 months, says commentator Jan Mikula in his new year outlook.
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NewsNisa boss Peter Batt exits business
Nisa Retail managing director Peter Batt is leaving the business after just over two years in charge.
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NewsExelby continues on carbon-neutral mission with solar power battery storage system
Exelby Services has fitted a battery system at its Whitwood truck stop in Castleford that will allow it to store energy generated by solar panels more effectively. The Yorkshire group describes the investment as the “next step in the site’s energy efficiency journey”.
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NewsMoto reaches two million electric charging events at its sites in 2024
EV motorists have charged their vehicles two million times at Moto’s sites across the UK’s motorway network this year, powering 135 million miles of EV drivers’ journeys.
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NewsFamily haulier trials HVO
A family-owned haulier is championing HVO after making a commitment to sustainability for its customers.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: Rising crime hits sector hard
Unfortunately 2024 will be partly remembered for all the criminal activity in the retail sector, with forecourts hit by a double whammy of drive-offs and shoplifting.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: EV market not charging ahead as fast as expected
The change in government in July led to the ban on the sale of new ICE vehicles being brought forward to its original 2030 date. However, things are not going as planned as low consumer demand dogs the EV market.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: Zuber starts to build his empire
When readers of the highly anticipated Top 50 Indies report, which came out in February 2024, saw how EG Group had dropped from the number two position to number 11 they may have understandably been shocked.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: MFG motors on
Barely a week went by during 2024 without Top 50 Indie number one MFG appearing in council records across the land, having applied for planning permission for one development or another.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: the highs and lows
It’s been another busy year for forecourt retailers. We’ve had the completion of the MFG/Morrisons deal and Zuber Issa buying EG Group’s UK forecourts and starting an ambitious acquisition spree.
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AnalysisA look back on 2024: food to go keeps on innovating
No half-decent forecourt operation is complete nowadays without a good food-to-go offer and 2024 was another year of innovation across the category.
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NewsMurco dealer sees off repeat shoplifters with Chirp-protect tags
Murco dealer Veer Patel is preventing up to £200 a month of stock being stolen by fitting Chirp-protect alarmed security tags onto high value items in his family’s Spar store.
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NewsCash back in fashion as cost-of-living crisis bites
Forecourt operators and other retailers have been urged not to abandon cash transactions after a study showed that its use in shops is up for the second year running.
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NewsBP predicts festive bonanza
BP forecasts that its 300 company-owned sites will sell 1.6 million drinks and 750,000 baked goods over the three weeks to December 25 as motorists take to the road for the festive period.
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NewsShell to construct Scotland’s first all-EV charging forecourt in Aberdeen
Shell has been cleared to begin work on an all-electric vehicle (EV) charging outlet on the site of its former Aberdeen headquarters.
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NewsPRA rallies forecourt operators to join inheritance tax campaign
The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) is calling on members to back a campaign urging ministers to reverse inheritance tax plans it fears will lead to reduced investment, forced early business sales, and site closures.
