VST Forecourts, which entered the Top 50 Indies this year and previously focussed its operations in Wales, now has a second English site in its portfolio of nine filling stations following the acquisition of South Molton Services in Devon.
The firm, headed by Vijay Jaganathan, branched out of Wales in 2024 with the purchase of a site in Driffield, East Yorkshire, and has now cemented its foothold in England with the purchase of the Devon forecourt.
South Molton had been under the same ownership for 18 years and was put on the market as a retirement sale. It features three pump islands dispensing around 3.5mlpa, alongside a recently refurbished 2,500sq ft shop. Also included in the sale is a separate building that plays host to a staffroom, manager’s office, fully fitted commercial kitchen and two-bedroom cottage.
The Esso branded forecourt is on one of the main roads in South Molton and is the only filling station in the town, which sits 12 miles to the south-east of Barnstaple and 18 miles to the north-west of Tiverton. It represents both VST Forecourt’s largest investment into a single site and, aside from service areas, is the most expensive PFS to have ever been transacted on in North Devon.
Jaganathan already has his sights set on updating the forecourt, having purchased new pumps with a view to reconfiguring the pump setup, which currently comprises two islands to the front of the forecourt, and a third awkwardly positioned in the centre of the hardstanding by the shop.
The Devon site isn’t the only one to feature in Jaganathan’s expansion plans, either, with VST Forecourts set to complete on a further two PFS by the end of the year.
South Molton’s vendor, Gary Clay, thanks his staff, customers and the local community for their support over the years, and says that while the decision to move the site on “has been difficult”, he is “delighted to hand over the business to Vijay and his team and look forward to the changes he is planning to implement”.
Jaganathan wishes Clay well for his retirement and thanks William Trott, who brokered the deal, adding: “This has been our biggest acquisition to date and brings us into an area which we have had plans to be in for some time. We look forward to continuing to work with the existing staff and the customers”.
