It’s been another lively week in the convenience sector. Just when the spotlight was on Mike Greene and his efforts to get the good ship My Local up and running, on Monday came the news that his stores’ former owner, Morrisons, was getting back into the c-store game.
Morrisons is to pilot a convenience food offer in five petrol filling station stores owned by Motor Fuel Group.
The key point here is that these stores will be owned by the forecourt operator and not the supermarket group.
The stores will say Morrisons above the door (and not M Local), but in reality it will be very much Motor Fuel Group that will be calling the shots on what’s happening inside.
Morrisons will, in effect, act as a symbol group, supplying own-label and branded goods to the stores involved in the trial with MFG.
It is a low risk, low-cost move that has the potential to be scaled up to become a significant opportunity for Morrisons down the line.
As with the sale of M Local to Greene, Morrisons is leaving convenience to the experts; but in this case it actually stands to reap the rewards of that policy.
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