Spar will kick off an ambitious new retailer recruitment campaign in May to support its goal of becoming the number one entirely branded petrol-filling station solution in the UK, both by site numbers and volume.
The move follows a successful trial of the dual-branded format, announced last April, with both shop and forecourt featuring the Spar brand, the fuel being supplied by Harvest Energy. The first site in the trial, B&M Harland of Pickering in North Yorkshire, boosted fuel volume by 32%, and shop sales by 20%. A second site - Spar Hathersage in Derbyshire – has also reported increased sales, while a third is about to open.
Mark Steven, business development controller at Spar UK, said there are 100 more sites “in the pipeline”.
“The forecourt sector is a marketplace we’re very comfortable with,” he said. “It’s a marketplace we’re demonstrated we can work in and achieve tangible results for retailers. We have a number of prominent retailers like Euro Garages, Kay Group and David Charman at Parkfoot Garage. They are at the cutting edge of what they do.”
Spar is taking advantage of what it sees as a gap in the market, where independent dealers have become increasingly disenchanted with their service from the oil majors. They want contract transparency and competitive fuel pricing. Research also revealed that forecourt independents want to bring the shop brand out on the forecourt and remove the confusion of dual branding.
Steven said the key benefits of the deal included access to shop supply and entire forecourt branding from Spar – “the UK’s largest and most successful forecourt symbol brand”.
“The proposition also gives retailers access to Harvest Energy fuel supply; cross-promotions, linking shop purchases to money-off fuel, which enables retailers to compete with the multiples and offer real value to their customers; the combined expertise of Spar and Harvest Energy driving sales and profitability; and flexible stock and supply options.”
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