All Forecourt Trader articles in November 2007
View all stories from this issue.
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News
BP to sell US forecourt operations
BP is to sell all of its company-owned and company-operated convenience stores in the US. The majority of the stores - which total more than 700 - will go to franchisees and some will be sold to dealers and large distributors.The company said the sale of the convenience stores would ...
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PRA buys BigOil.net
The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) has bought fuel price data supplier BigOil.net. The service, which is totally independent, incorporates the Platts fuel price market data.PRA director Ray Holloway said: “By finalising the purchase of BigOil.net, the PRA has secured the future of this established service. It provides vital price information ...
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Former directors of Aleef Garages jailed over tax fraud
Seven former employees - including three former directors - of Bolton-based Aleef Garages have been jailed over tax fraud. The former directors along with six other former senior managers and former employees of the company pleaded guilty to the fraud after an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs. The defendants ...
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Fuel shortages follow Coryton fire
Retailers have been warned it could take a month for the Coryton oilrefinery to recover its full capacity after a fire at the site last month. Petroplus Holdings, the Swiss-based company which bought the Essex plant from BP earlier this year, said the refinery was producing less than half its ...
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Esso ’On the Run’ joins ACS
Esso has joined the Association of Convenience Stores with its On the Run convenience format. Since launching On the Run in the UK Esso will have over 90 stores by the end of 2007. James Lowman, chief executive, said: “I am delighted that Esso has joined ACS with its On ...
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Mis-fuels rise to 150,000 a year
At least 150,000 drivers mis-fuel every year - that’s one person making the error every three and a half minutes, according to the AA. British motorists are getting increasingly careless atthe pumps, and the number putting the wrong fuel into their car has doubled over the past ten years. ...
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News
Top-up troubles
It seems a long time ago, but do you remember when the first pay-as-you-go mobile phone cards began to appear on forecourts?We first started to record the sales of them as a separate sales group in the late 1990s. At the time it made sense to include them as a ...
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Supper stars
Not everyone plans their weekly meals. Busy mums on tight schedules might have to, but the rest of us probably make up our menus as we go along. And that’s good news for forecourt retailers who can cash in on customers who are shopping for ’tonight’s dinner’.Spar has already cottoned ...
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News
A safe and sound solution
Retailers can cut noise pollution at forecourts with a solution from Environ Technologies.The acoustic enclosure specialist provides units to shield machinery via its Modula system.The company’s solution was recently used at a site in Marple, Cheshire, where air conditioning units and a fan were proposed for the rear of a ...
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News
Right on Track
The future of fuels - and motoring - is green. But that doesn’t mean we’ll all have to start driving powerless box-shaped vehicles.That was the message from TV presenter and motoring journalist Quentin Willson at the Forecourt Trader Top Indies Fuel Track Day in Castle Combe, Wiltshire, last month.The former ...
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News
New team in Torex restructure
Retail software provider Torex has announced a major restructure under a new management team. It aims to bring together many disparate business units to create a single global company operating under the brand of Torex.Mike Greenough, chairman and CEO, will head up the global executive management team, while Graeme Cooksley ...
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News
Results of this month’s online poll:
Do you agree with the PRA’s campaign that the fuel duty rises should be deferred until oil prices fall?YES84%NO16%The PRA has certainly hit a nerve with its call for the government to hold off on fuel duty hikes until oil prices drop. More than three quarters of readers say they ...
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Mo’gas
The advantage of having been around the block a few times is that your experience ought to help prevent you from doing anything too disastrous. Unless you’ve been exceptionally lucky you’ve found out the hard way that embarking on a course of action without weighing up all the possible consequences ...
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News
A real Meat treat
Meat snack Coan Biltong is fast gaining sales in the forecourt sector.With food-on-the-go in such high demand, it offers customers a tasty, ready-to-eat treat which is low in fat and high in protein.The packaging is designed for increased shelf presence and the snacks are displayed on a durable plastic hanging ...
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Keeping it sweet
Nature’s Sugar Free products, distributed exclusively in the UK by the Anglo Peruvian Trading Company, are a great solution for health-driven but busy customers.Made from high-quality grains and seeds in bar or bite variants, Nature’s Sugar Free are also free from cholesterol and transfats as well as artificial colours, flavourings ...
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The Italian job
Country Choice has launched a new pizza concept for forecourts that enables retailers to sell freshly-prepared pizzas quickly, easily and with a high cash margin.Despite the fact the pizza market estimated to be worth around £1bn in the UK, fresh pizzas are not universally available within the sector. This new ...
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Hot new machine
Retailers can bring a taste of the Continent to their forecourt with a new hot chocolate maker.Ciocchino is a thick hot chocolate made with quality ingredients and is aimed at the adult market.It comes in classic Guayaquil dark chocolate or extra bitter Cuba varieties.The dispenser is easy to use - ...
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In the surgery this month – Hazelgrove Services Sparkford, Somerset
GENERAL APPEARANCE: Situated on the busy A303, Hazelgrove Services is part of the Chartman Group. From the roundabout the Esso service station with its Spar shop is clearly visible and it shares the plot with a McDonald’s.FORECOURT: Under a large canopy there is plenty of space to access the ...
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News
Gum gets an update
Long-lasting flavour and new eye-catching packaging are features of improved Airwaves - the chewing gum designed to provide consumers with an invigorating ’kick’.The latest Airwaves - which its maker Wrigley claims is the second-fastest selling chewing gum brand in the UK - benefits from flavour beads in the gum centre ...
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The House of Fraser
Being a Fraser must feel a bit like being something of a celebrity in the forecourt industry. The family name is associated with one of the most successful independents in the business, and most major retailers and suppliers will have heard of it.As well as winning numerous awards, the Thames ...