MRH (GB) is sporting its own new fuel brand – Torq – on five forecourts in Scotland, in the absence of a competitive oil company deal.
“It’s more of a badge than a brand at the moment, but we may develop it further in the future,” said John Lynn, managing director of the UK’s biggest independent forecourt retailer.
“We’re certainly not going own-branded, but we’re using the Torq brand where we can’t get what we deem to be a competitive quote from our traditional suppliers. It’s something in our armoury to have available when we need it,” he stressed.
“It fits in with our thinking at the moment and we may look to brand more sites in other areas where it makes sense.”
Two of the sites (in Aberdeen and Glasgow) are new to MRH – recently acquired from Shell; while the other three (in Aviemore, Newtonmore and Grantown on Spey) have been in the company’s network for some time, and were previously Esso branded.
“We’ve launched the brand with some good promotions and it has been very well received so far,” said John. “We’ve been offering ‘special price days’ on two days a week, as motorists are always looking for a competitive fuel price.”
He said the sites were being supplied on a term contract, but would not confirm the supplier, though it is believed to be trader/blenders such as Greenergy or Harvest Energy.
The name Torq was the result of a creative design workshop at MRH headquarters.
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