Retail Randoms

BEFORE YOU GO

Is that a JET forecourt?

There’s been a lot of talk in the world of convenience retailing recently about standing out from the competition by becoming a destination store or having a unique selling point.

Ian Aitkenhead, former owner of Bishopmill Service Station in Elgin, was clearly a man ahead of his time when he snapped up a former RAF Cold War-era Blackburn Buccaneer attack jet for a “few thousand pounds” in 1996.

For the past quarter of a century the plane has been quietly driving footfall to the forecourt, which is currently Esso-branded. As Ian says: “A lot of holidaymakers have called by, it has been very well photographed over the years.”

However, the site’s new owners have other plans for the sizeable chunk of land the 63-foot-long antique occupies and so Ian has put it up for sale on Gumtree for the bargain price of £28,000.

The burning question remains: why in the world did the petrol station switch fuel brand away from JET?

No smoke without fire (extinguisher)

Sticking with the petrol station theme, a fouryear-old clip has resurfaced and is currently doing its best to go viral on social media.

The grainy forecourt footage, which a distinct lack of combat aircraft suggests wasn’t shot in Elgin, reveals what happened next after a driver threw common sense out of the window and proceeded to fill up his car while smoking a cigarette.

The store assistant is to be commended for quickly resorting to draconian measures in what was – all joking aside – a potentially lethal situation for all concerned.

He probably realised there was no point in trying to reason with someone who doesn’t know which way round a cap is supposed to sit on your head.