Our new £3.5m service station in Malton will meet changing needs of drivers: Joseph Richardson

The construction of our brand new service station on the Eden Business Park at Malton represents a £3.5 million investment and will create 16 new jobs, so it’s essential that we get it right. This means understanding our customers’ needs and offering them the right mix of facilities, products and services.

We work closely with a small number of trusted brand partners and we’re sticking with this tried-and-tested formula at Malton, where the fuel station will be BP-branded and the convenience store will be SPAR-branded. The ‘food to go’ offer will include Cheeky Coffee Co-branded drinks, which have a much lower price point than most high street coffee brands. This was important to us because we know the cost of living is still a huge concern for people.

One of the things that appealed to us about the Malton site was the fact that the developer had also secured planning permission for drive-through restaurants. This will make the area an important hub for the local communities of Malton and Pickering, as well as those passing on their commute to work or enjoying holidays and day trips.

As part of a second phase of work planned for later in the year, we’ll be installing electric vehicle charging bays on the site. The gradual shift towards electric vehicles means that the industry as a whole is having to adapt, but this constant evolution is something we’ve become used to. For example, when supermarkets entered the fuel market in the 1980s and 1990s, many sites closed whereas we invested in our shops to future-proof our business.

People are always going to move around in their vehicles and will still need roadside service facilities. Therefore, our focus is on acquiring and developing key locations where we can provide our convenience, food service and valeting offer, along with excellent and friendly customer service. Larger sites can continue to offer petrol and diesel for as long as they’re required, alongside electric vehicle charging, before converting over to electric fully when the time comes.

Diesel and petrol sales will continue to decline and this may impact upon smaller sites that don’t have enough land to be able to adapt their offering. Having said that, there may be other opportunities for these sites, such as offering unmanned service stations using ‘pay at the pump’ technology or by making the switch to valeting.

Our ongoing evolution is also evident in our £3 million investment in the expansion of our truckstop facilities at Goole in East Yorkshire, which was made possible by the demolition of our former car showroom and also created space for two new drive-through restaurants that have proved to be a real draw for passing motorists and local communities.

As a family business, we’ll continue to look for investment and diversification opportunities, such as lorry parking or drive-through facilities. Our willingness to adapt in an ever-changing world has set us in good stead and, when our new Eden Service Station at Malton opens its doors in April, it will be the twelfth site in our growing portfolio.

Providing we keep an eye on emerging trends and changing consumer habits, our long-established family business should continue to thrive for another 100 years or more.

Joseph Richardson is Managing Director of Jos Richardson & Son