
A forecourt operated by Top 50 Indie Krisco Services has enjoyed a 25% uplift in sales across multiple categories following a round of shop improvements at a site on the outskirts of Marlborough, Wiltshire.
The firm purchased Burbage Service Station around five years ago during covid times and subsequently carried out a knock-down rebuild.
“But we knew we had a bit of extra space on the site, so after getting to know our customers, in September we began to renovate the shop,” says Luxman Selvarajah, a director with Krisco.
That work finished in November, bringing with new flooring, lighting, tillpoints and the usual upgrade accoutrements, together with a small extension that took the shop’s retail space from 2,400sq ft to just under 3,000sq ft.

The extension provided enough space to install multiple Cook freezers, an open-plan kitchen for preparing food for delivery as well as in-store sales, and a beer cave. The shop also moved over from Londis to Budgens as part of the project.
“We knew from our customer base that ready-meals and food-to-go were popular”, Selvarajah says, “so the refurbishment allowed us to cater for that.
“With the beer cave, people on their way to parties or barbecues want chilled drinks, especially multipacks of beer, and you just can’t get those chilled in supermarkets, plus it’s so much more convenient to stop off here on your way to somewhere.”
Adding six Cook freezers has also been a bonus for Burbage, Selvarajah details. “Our shopfitters actually introduced us to Cook about five years ago when we were renovating another site, and we haven’t looked back. My wholesale bill with them for Burbage is about £3,500 a week.”

It’s not just sales of ready-meals that have grown since the improvement works as the site’s wholesale partner, Booker, has told Krisco.
“Booker says our sales are up 25% across chilled, fruit and veg, and ready-meals compared to when we bought the site, but you can see the difference across all departments”, Selvarajah says.
While it might have been easier for Krisco to revamp the shop when they renovated the forecourt five years ago, taking time to understand what people using a site really want – in Burbage’s case food to go, ready-meals and beer in particular – can pay dividends, too.
“It’s about doing the research, understanding what the customer wants – that’s the really important thing”, Selvarajah concludes.



















