It was always going to be personal for industry stalwart Ken Kay, redeveloping a forecourt just 400 metres from where he was born in Blackburn, and a site which he has owned for over 30 years. The project has just won The Kay Group the Forecourt Trader of the Year award.
But the development of the 24-hour Grimshaw Park Service Station on the edge of the Lancashire town – which turned a double storey building into an imposing three-floor glass-fronted shop and headquarters – is even more poignant for the 80-year-old founder of Top 50 Indie The Kay Group.
This is because his daughter Ashley, one of his two children, a former lawyer who joined the family business eight years ago, was involved in its conception. An interior design enthusiast, she took inspiration from the former HS2 training building in Doncaster, with its sawtooth, blue tinted glass front, and silver rain screening.
Long-term employee managing director Richard Cox also had a major role to play in the site’s design. Significantly, he came up with the feature of the staggered series of four canopies supported by a single pole over each of the pump islands: a nod to the old-style Mobil single-legged canopies, the signature design for the fuel company in the early 1970s when Kay started out in the industry working for Mobil as what was then termed a tenant and would now be called a commission operator.
Kay, now 15 in the Top 50 Indies ranking of forecourt operators by numbers of sites, had tried 20 times before to win the Forecourt Trader of the Year accolade having been in the industry now for 54 years.
This Shell/Londis forecourt, which re-opened after a knockdown rebuild in June 2025, complete with electric vehicle charging, did more than enough to win over the judges. One who visited the forecourt described it as “absolutely stunning”.
She was impressed with the “gleaming” head office/convenience store, “pristine forecourt” and the “chap who walks the premises to ensure everything and everyone are okay”.
And that is not to mention the behind-the-scenes additions. A rainwater harvesting system supplies at least half of the water needed for the four-bay jet wash centre from Adriateh.
Also, a 113KWp sized solar panel system – with panels on all four forecourt canopies, the EV charging point canopies. and the roof of the building can keep the site off grid for many hours a day during spring and summer, cutting up to 30% from the annual electricity bill.
The shop, which includes a Greggs café with four tables, has trebled in size to 6,000sq ft. Rough land, which the business bought 10 years ago, has been bulldozed to increase the plot to over one acre and introduce four charging bays, and parking for around 14 vehicles, bringing the total number of spaces to 40.
There are two Shell Recharge EV chargepoints – one 200kW and one 400kW – under canopy. And the well-lit and spacious forecourt, with eight hoses on each island, includes two retail Adblue dispensers. There are two vacuum/tyre inflating bays opposite the jet washes. And there are InPost and Yeep! lockers.
Inside the headquarters, Ashley, the company’s business development and legal director, has developed a calm office haven with neutral colours and luxury finish reminiscent of a high-end City law firm.
There is a 40-seat training room, 11 offices, a kitchen/dining area, a communal area, shower room, uniform room, quiet room, and boardroom.
Ken Kay’s office is on the top floor overlooking the forecourt and, in the distance, his old grammar school, engineering college, and the former British Northrop Loom Co building where he first worked.
The two-floor 12,000sq ft complex includes offices that could be rented out to local businesses, but for now the 25 head office staff – running 24 sites and developing a 25th in Stafford to open next spring– are enjoying the luxury of the space.
Developing the site has not been a quick process, with planning taking a year to get approval and the site 14 months to complete before it opened in June last year. Such a project would normally take about six months, but it involved considerable excavation.
But the effort is paying off. Fuel volume has doubled to 160,000 litres a week, and shop turnover, including sales from a 600sq ft Iceland store within a store, have gone from under £20,000 a week to around £22,000, and that figure is increasing.
The Londis shop has a far greater emphasis on fresh, turning what was primarily a site where motorists bought snacks into a convenience offer for meals for now or tonight.
In a reference to Kay’s Blackburn heritage, the shop aisles are named after local streets.
It has energy efficient refrigeration, LED lighting, electronic shelf-edge labelling, and two self-service checkouts, one which can take fuel payments, and one outside the Iceland walk-in area.
Kay is modest when asked about his business. He attributes its success to his team, many of which have been with him for many years. Cox, for example, has worked at the company for over 27 years. And Grimshaw’s site manager Zaheda Kazi, who was at the awards when Kay lifted the top trophy, has been at the site for its duration.
He says winning the award recognises their dedication. “It is wonderful to receive the award after so many years of trying. In particular, it was so nice for the team after so many attempts.”
In a message thanking his team, he said: “We have won numerous awards over the years for design, customer service, innovation, twice regional winners of the Forecourt Trader Awards, and a Lifetime Achievement award, which I have been so very proud of. But this pinnacle prestigious award is my proudest.”
