Over 100 independent Jet dealers head to Cannes for fuel conference
HOSPITALITY staff working in the French Riviera resort town of Cannes are no strangers to hosting some big stars, so it’s fitting that fuel giant Phillips 66 chose the city most famous for its international film festival as the location for its customer conference.
Over 100 independent Jet dealers were in attendance at the event which saw the company’s retail and wholesale customers come together for a series of business updates and breakout sessions.
Mary Wolf, managing director for UK marketing at Jet parent firm Phillips 66 and Pam McGinnis, president, global marketing for the firm, both delivered presentations at the event.
Attendees were also invited to participate in breakout sessions hosted by Richard Lim, chief executive of retail economic analysis firm Retail Economics, and Val Kirillovs, new business director at HIM Shopper Research and Insights.
We chose ‘Fuelling Growth, Together’ as our conference theme to highlight not only our growth plans but also our ongoing commitment to adding value to our dealers’ businesses.
Lim’s session provided an overview of the UK’s current economic climate and explored the impact of factors such as GDP and Brexit on consumer confidence in the wider economy, while Kirillovs’ session explored trends in the shopping habits of fuel consumers.
Forecourt retailers Andrew and Scott Aitken jointly own East Lothian sites Jet By Pass Service Station in Haddington and Jet Rigg Service Station in Dunbar.
Commenting on the conference, Andrew Aitken said: “We have been with Jet for 28 years and they remain one of the few companies in the retail industry who really know how to treat their customers and make them feel valued.
“The conference was fantastic from start to finish – from the hotel and location, to the business content and the entertainment.
“It was invaluable to meet up with other Jet dealers and glean useful information and updates from Jet at the business sessions, but also through conversations throughout the whole event.
“I really enjoyed meeting Soenke Voges, Jet’s new retail business manager, for the first time.
“It’s clear he’s very forward-thinking and has lots of plans for the business as it continues to grow.”
Mary Wolf commented on the conference: “We are delighted with how well the conference was received by our customers.
“We chose ‘Fuelling Growth, Together’ as our conference theme to highlight not only our growth plans for the Jet network, but also our ongoing commitment to adding value to our dealers’ businesses so that they can thrive and achieve their own ambitions.
“Bringing our customers together in a venue that is far removed from their everyday commitments is invaluable as they get the chance to share their views and experiences with other dealers in our network.”
• Fuel brand Jet is marketed by American multinational energy company Phillips 66. Jet was established in 1954 and has more than 330 forecourts in its UK network of independently-operated service stations.
