A prominent site in Paignton, Devon, which currently serves a motorhome showroom, could be returned to its old role as a filling station, a trend which has become established in the forecourt industry.
The site, on the busy A3022, is the last stop for fuel before Brixham, a popular destination both for holiday makers and water-sports enthusiasts. The forecourt has acted as a showroom and workshop for a family-run motorhome business for almost 30 years, while its current owners stopped selling fuel about a decade after they took possession due to difficulties in competing with supermarket prices.
The changes the forecourt industry has gone through since then means any new owner, should they secure planning permission, could consider reinstating the pumps and recommissioning the filled-in tanks, though. And if planning permission is secured the Devon forecourt could cater not just for cars, but for the powerboats that are so often towed by those off to the seaside.
The vendor, Alan Kerr Motorhome Dealers, is selling the Brixham Road site as it has a purpose-built premises a couple of miles down the road, while the popularity of online shopping means a showroom in so prominent a location is no longer the must-have it once was.
The site sits on 0.9 acres, is guided at £1.4m to £1.5m and is offered with vacant possession. Interested parties can submit sealed bids to the agents, Charles Darrow, who say they are seeing “strong interest from fuel retailers and forecourt operators who recognise the potential of this site”.
