In January Topaz and Toyota announced a new partnership which sees four new Toyota cars being supplied for the Topaz Play or Park. Paul Candon (l) is pictured with Laura Murphy, loyalty manager Topaz and Steve Tormey, deputy managing director, Toyota Ireland Clever marketing and a culture for continuous change sees Irish owned Topaz remain one of the most recognisable and trusted fuel brands in Ireland, says the company’s marketing director Paul Candon. Topaz keeps Ireland moving, we like to say,” says Paul of the business that is 100% Irish owned, and has 330 service stations nationwide. It also has a strong interest in the aviation, marine, gas oil and lubricants market and services the needs of an estimated 250,000 home heating customers. In its distribution business the company sells home heating oil to Topaz owned businesses north and south of the border and to authorised distributors – some of which use the Topaz brand and others who choose to use their own brand. A trusted brand Paul outlines how Topaz, which employs 1,700 people is one of the most recognisable fuel brands on the island and is what people consider a trusted brand. “We have been delivering home heating oil for over 35 years, first as Shell, then Statoil, and in our current guise as Topaz for the last six years.” The trust that consumers have in Topaz has helped it to remain one of the biggest players in the industry – an industry that has suffered considerably during recessionary times not least from the issues with fuel laundering. “People are concerned about laundering and the product they receive,” Paul says highlighting the prevalence of fuel smuggling, mixing and laundering in border counties. “It’s estimated that 10% of diesel is laundered,” he adds. “This represents a loss of around 3.5 million euro to the Irish government and also a sizeable revenue loss north of the border.” Paul believes however that the ROM returns that traders are now required to make, following the introduction of such measures by the Irish Revenue just over 12 months ago, has helped to make businesses more accountable and has gone some way to counter the serious problem of laundering. “There has been an uplift in business over the last 12 months which I can’t attribute fully to the introduction of ROM, but there could be a connection.” He also believes that Ireland has turned a corner and is coming out of recession, which is helping to improve overall business. “North of the border where Topaz commands around 8% of the home heating market, business has remained a lot steadier over the last few years compared to the shakier Republic where it has about a 20% market share.” Driving change At Topaz, the company serves to drive change continually and review its strategies regularly. “There is a culture of continuous improvement and change with new ideas considered on an ongoing basis,” Paul explains. Within the last 12 months Topaz has introduced a Play or Park loyalty scheme for customers, where points are gained for making purchases of any description at Topaz. The scheme has been a great success story offering customers an incentive to fulfil all their fuel needs with Topaz. One of the great advantages of the system, which currently has 270,000 customers registered, is that it now has a direct marketing route to customers enabling the company to see and trace spending habits and market accordingly. Going forward, Topaz plans to increase its share of business in Northern Ireland and has recently brought new people in to prepare for the task. It also hopes to look at online sales and how much this arm of the business can be grown. Another aim in its medium-term future is to look outside Ireland and at expanding into the UK and Europe, where it sees some room for expansion. At present in the Republic, the company is happy to consolidate its position and continue to market itself as a quality and trusted brand and one that can compete on price and value – highlighting that the Topaz experience is a total package and value is not always just about price. Paul uses the analogy of buying batteries:” If you were going to buy batteries, would you buy a brand like Duracell or a shop’s own brand? Price is one thing but value is something else entirely.”

Since Drury Oils was set up 12 years ago, the company has grown into a stronghold business in the Roscommon town of Ballaghaderreen writes Irish correspondent Aine Faherty. Its formula is arguably a simple one – an independent, authorised Texaco Oil distributor providing a top of the range oil service along with ancillary products that complement the business perfectly.   Small beginnings When owner Adrian Drury started the business in 2002, a skeleton staff operated from a small yard with just two 40 foot storage tanks. Adrian drove the company’s sole delivery truck and took orders out on the road whilst wife Fiona looked after the administration. As the business grew Adrian employed additional staff and a new depot was built with storage capacity for 110,000 litres of kerosene, 75,000 litres of gas oil, 75,000 litres of derv and two 70,000 underground petrol storage tanks.   Sales from the forecourt and making deliveries Today the company operates a pump service for road diesel, petrol and kerosene, which is sold in 20 litre drums. “This is an important arm of the business which has grown over the last few years,” said Adrian. “We also sell solid fuel in the form of coal and briquettes which has proved to be a good addition.” The Drury Oils forecourt does not have a convenience store. “Our location in an industrial park doesn’t have the passing trade to allow for it,” explained Adrian. The company also sells fully bunded and single skin Platinum Tanks and tank locks – a big seller in recessionary times. “Customers want locks as a deterrent to a would-be thief,” says Adrian. Drury Oils also stocks a range of lubes and engine oils. Although depot sales are important, the company’s home heating delivery service accounts for most of the business. Over the winter months and at other busy times, Drury Oils operates four delivery trucks – one that Adrian drives, another driven by a full-time operator and two others with seasonal drivers behind the wheel. “This market is still buoyant, but the commercial side isn’t as big as it once was,” said Adrian. “I pulled away from filling stations when an increasingly dodgier element began creeping in. I’m holding my own in these challenging times and still have good customers and a strong pool of suppliers. “We should all be talking to each other, and we should make sure that if we’re owed a lot of money, we tell others about it so they don’t get their fingers burned too”    Sharing information and not selling yourself short “I would advise anyone in the distributor market to ensure that they get paid for product. We should all be talking to each other, and we should make sure that if we’re owed a lot of money, we tell others about it so they don’t get their fingers burned too. “I also think distributors should have a minimum delivery – one that they can actually make money on, and stick to it,” added Adrian. “For me a drop of €150 is only feasible in the local town – it wouldn’t be worth travelling 10 miles for a drop of that size. “We’d all love to get the 1,000 litre drops but it isn’t happening at the moment. It’s a price conscious and cut throat industry right now but people should remember that they also need to survive.”   In the summertime In the summer months, Drury focuses on a strong agricultural market where it has a number of loyal, local customers, and despite the slowdown in the sector, the company has a select band of hauliers that remain on its books. Marketing and promotional plans are also put in place – marketing the Drury Oils brand and product both locally and online is never underestimated. “We’ve recently invested in freshening up our website, the revamped site now has a very modern feel and is easily navigable,” explains Adrian. Having tried to grow the business further in bad times, when conditions are better and the time is right, this amicable businessman wants to steer his business in an upward direction once again.

Expansion amongst other things has been high on the agenda for Top Oil this year. Having recently signed deals with two new authorised distributors, the company is committed to developing its brand and maintaining its foothold as a market leader across the fuel sector. John O’Donovan, national reseller manager with Top Oil says the company prides itself on providing a true end-to-end solution from port to pump, to ensure the best quality products for Irish consumers. New partnerships Talking to Fuel Oil News’ Irish correspondent, Aine Faherty, he outlined how the group has concentrated on forming partnerships with/supporting authorised distributors across the country. “The investment we’ve made in the brand over the last 12 months has been very well received,” he explained. Whilst in recent years, Top has seen the industry move away from contracted and branded distributors, the company believes that this has shifted, with distributors now recognising the importance of having a national brand on their fleets and in their depots. “With some uncertainty on how supply lines will develop over the coming years, distributors are re-evaluating their position and this is working in our favour,” adds John. He believes that it’s not just price attracting resellers to the brand, but also the extra support and backup it offers. “The last few years have been difficult for oil distributors, volumes have fallen and there are tighter margins,” he told Fuel Oil News. “Distributors have had to adapt to facilitate lower order sizes, overhead reductions and changing customer credit culture.” Killarney Oil is one of Top Oil’s newest authorised distributors. As a business that has been operating since 1991, it supplies the domestic, commercial and agricultural sectors in the County Kerry tourist town, as well as the hospitality sector – servicing a large number of hotels and B&Bs. According to Asumpta O’Donoghue, who manages Killarney Oil with brother, James, the company chose to partner Top Oil because it is a national brand with a well established network across the country, and in particular, Kerry. “We believe that by being a branded distributor, delivering quality assured products, it gives our customers peace of mind,” she commented. Asumpta also believes that the business support and advice they get from the Top Oil team is an important aspect of the partnership. “They keep us up to date on changes in the industry, stock management, credit, pricing and marketing. Last winter when there were issues with kerosene supply across the country, we were always supplied with product, which was invaluable.” With a clear focus on developing its network of authorised distributors, Top Oil’s latest signing is Doran Oil of Cashel, Co Tipperary, bringing the total number of distributors to 30.

Following the very mild winter of 2011/12, many pundits were predicting that 2013 would see a number of distributors exit the business. Largely due to a winter that extended up until May over which time sales of kerosene rose, this did not happen.