New Spar forecourt opens in Moffat

A new independent Spar forecourt store has opened on the high street in Moffat.

With an excellent location as a central point to explore Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders, the 1000 sq. ft store and petrol station is the most recent addition to Spar Scotland’s growing estate of independent stores.

Retailer Sai Elaprolu said he chose to join Spar Scotland based on their shared values, quality and a passion for serving communities.

“We had passion for retail and customer services which is where we started our career. The team at CJ Lang have supported us right from day one and they are a bunch of flexible people who will go above and beyond to work with the retailers,” Elaprolu said.

“Many of those whom we dealt with at CJ Lang have come from the shop floor themselves and the knowledge they bring to the table is invaluable. As we are a forecourt, we deal with many third parties, but CJ Lang are the most approachable and you don’t feel like you’re dealing with a system or process. Instead, a human is listening to you.

“Spar Scotland has been supportive in all aspects of onboarding, refit and the launch process. I would like to thank them for all their support and look forward to working with them.”

As the site was in poor condition when Sai took over, he worked with the CJ Lang team to address all aspects of the refit, from sourcing to designing the layout and décor. The licensed store now provides food to go options such as Smokin’ Bean Coffee, Rollover hotdogs and Tango Ice Blast, as well as services such as Lottery and PayPoint.

“I cannot thank the Sales Team at CJ Lang enough for their support and the work to get us to this date. They’ve used every opportunity to pop over and spend their time in setting up planograms, help with stock and get me comfortable with Spar processes,” Elaprolu said.

“Since we have opened the doors there has been a positive reception in the community.”

Mike Leonard, sales director for Spar Scotland, said: “It is amazing to hear such great feedback from Sai about the hard working members of our team and how they’ve all ensured the joining process is as smooth and efficient as possible for our independent retailers.

“My thanks to the Spar Scotland team for all of their hard work and I wish Sai every success in his new venture.”