Retailers already taking part in the Future Positive project are delighted by the lack of hassle involved, and back the scheme's ambition to give independents access to more information. Dipak Brahmbhatt decided his convenience store, Premier Food & Wine in Brighouse, West Yorkshire, should join Future Positive after hearing about it at a trade show. He said as well as being free, the project requires no effort at all on the part of the retailer. "Apart from signing a letter, I haven't had to do anything," said Brahmbhatt. "The supplier did everything that needed to be done online, and the data just automatically gets sent without me even realising it." He added: "The multiples have been doing this sort of thing for years, but up until now there has been nobody to do it for the independent sector. It's an excellent idea." Neville Cope, managing director of Copes Service Stations ­ which operates 10 forecourt outlets in the West Midlands ­ also had no doubts about getting involved in Future Positive. "The more information is generated the better it is for everyone," he said. "We had no hesitation in agreeing to release our data, because if it can then be combined with figures from other outlets to create an accurate picture, then that has to be useful information ­ I know we will use it ourselves." Cope said one of the big attractions of the Future Positive initiative is its ability to offer retailers a snapshot of trends at local, regional and national level. "It's so much better to have a cross section of what is going on beyond our own little area," he said. "If this helps us to see how our business compares to similar operations across the country it will obviously be of great interest." {{NEWS }}