Top 50 Indies forecourt operator Motor Fuel Group (MFG) has signed an agreement to purchase the south-west of England forecourt operator, and fellow Top 50 Indie, Symonds Retail Limited.
The transaction is scheduled to close early next month.
CEO Jeremy Symonds is part of a family business that began as a convenience wholesaler in the mid 1960s, which grew to supply 800 stores, including 100 forecourts. In the early 1990s it developed its own network of convenience stores under the Smile brand. Following the sale of these businesses in 2007, Symonds Forecourts emerged. It was ranked 37 in the latest Top 50 Indie report (March 2019), and was overall winner of the Forecourt Trader Awards in 2012.
Jeremy Clarke, chief operating officer of MFG, said: “We are particularly delighted with this transaction because in addition to their existing 10 operating stations we also have three ‘new-to-industry sites’ in the acquisition package.
“Within the existing 10 stations, six are BP-branded, three Shell and one Texaco. The retail offer is split between Londis and Budgens with one station offering Subway and another one offering Greggs.
“We intend to open the three ‘new-to-industry’ stations in 2020, all with an excellent retail and ‘food-to-go’ offer and with the important addition of a dedicated high-power EV charging hub.”
The acquisition will bring the total number of stations operated by MFG to 904, reinforcing its position as the UK’s largest independent forecourt operator.
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