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Building a retail network at Essar

With ‘a strong vision and the required resources to deliver a well-planned entry into the market,’  Essar’s first branded site at Coalville in Leicestershire will be quickly followed by more sites
With ‘a strong vision and the required resources to deliver a well-planned entry into the market,’  Essar’s first branded site at Coalville in Leicestershire will be quickly followed by more sites
Last month Essar Oil UK became the newest entrant into the UK fuel retail sector when, in association with HKS Retail, its first branded service station opened in Leicestershire.
The site in Coalville has undergone a complete corporate rebrand and is the first of many Essar service stations planned across the country. Contracts for other retail sites have already been agreed and these will be rolled out over the coming months.
This is the first time the company, which owns and operates the Stanlow oil refinery, has supplied product directly to a site branded under its own company colours.   The refinery has supplied the major retail brands with high quality products for over half a century and currently produces 15% of all transport fuels used in the UK.
“This is a significant step forward and part of our plans to add value to our UK business,” said SB Prasad, chief commercial officer for retail at Essar Oil UK.
“We’ve worked hard to deliver a distinctive brand, competitive commercial offering and the best possible customer support.  HKS Retail has worked with all the major retail brands, so this is a real sign of their confidence in Essar and we look forward to further strengthening this relationship.”
Commercial business manager at Essar Oil UK, Bryan Hayes explained:   “Essar have brought a very clear, honest and straightforward offer to dealers in the UK, supplying quality products from our Stanlow refinery at value prices.
“We aim to build our network quickly over the coming months and are looking to talk with potential new dealers to see how we can work together to further develop their businesses.”
Shane Thakrar, chief executive HKS Retail said:  “We feel the Essar brand has a strong vision and the required resources to deliver a well-planned entry into the market.  The new branding is refreshing and welcoming to consumers, whom have commented favourably on the site’s new look.”
The Essar Group already has significant expertise in the retail sector with about 1,700 Essar-branded retail outlets in India, with another ~1,900 under various stages of implementation.
The global Essar Group has annual revenues of $35 billion, with operations in 29 countries and over 60,000 employees worldwide.

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