Brothers who own two forecourts in West Sussex, have just moved their second site to fuel supply from Greenergy with Esso branding, after the success of a similar move for their first site.

This January the Patel brothers moved fuel supply for their Hangleton Hove site after 10 years with Texaco, and in August they switched their site at Haywards Heath after eight years with BP.

The Patel brothers were recommended Greenergy by a friend in the industry who had recently changed his site from Texaco to Greenergy and Esso branding. And word of mouth continues. Since joining, the Patel brothers have recommended Greenergy to three other sites, all of which have switched their fuel supply from Texaco to Greenergy with Esso branding.

Gunvant Patel said: “Choosing Greenergy and Esso was one of the best things we could have done for our business. Sales volumes at our Brighton site, which changed brand in January this year, were 40% up in August compared with the same month last year. Our Haywards Heath site switched to Esso late August and we’re confident of great results there too.

“It’s clear that Esso is really popular with customers. They see Esso as an established brand providing quality fuel, with a positive price perception compared to the other oil majors. The new Synergy fuels branding is also bold, bright and attractive, especially at night, which helps draw customers in. We had underestimated the popularity of Tesco Clubcard loyalty points – for some customers it’s the main factor in picking their forecourt.”

Jay Patel added: “We spent over six months comparing offers. Greenergy proved to be the most competitive, plus the pricing structure was transparent and easy to understand. There was no confusing small print. While other offers may have appeared cheaper to begin with, once we had deciphered the small print we realised it wasn’t the case. Greenergy’s offer was honest and to the point from the very beginning.”

“Fuel cards are also simpler now. We receive a lump sum at the end of the day, rather than having to sift through all transactions. Before we switched to Greenergy, we used to spend hours trying to reconcile our fuel card spend; now we have more time to concentrate on our business.”

Gunvant Patel concluded: “Greenergy has a no nonsense approach with a family feel and it permeates everything they do. Everyone is helpful – from the team at the end of the phone that go to great lengths to make sure we never run out of fuel, to the polite Flexigrid drivers that deliver to our sites.

“I feel that we are in a partnership, rather than simply a customer, and that with their entrepreneurial outlook they understand what it’s like for ambitious independent dealers.”

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