Aleefs profits from rising fuel costs

ALEEF Garages, the independent newsagent ant petrol station forecourt operator, broke the £100m turnover barrier in 2011 after sales climbed by 10% to £101.3m.

The Bolton-based company, which is owned by directors Anis, Abid and Asif Patel, also increased pre-tax profits by 20% to £1.2m in the year to April 30.

The company benefited from a number of factors, not least the rising cost of fuel on which gross margins were maintained. It also undertook a “sizeable” investment on upgrading its estate of petrol station forecourts to improve both appearance and facilities. Around half of the forecourts were redeveloped during the year, the company said.

Aleefs also said that a cost-saving programme had been undertaken, which has “continued to deliver savings to the bottom line and will remain a strong theme going forward”.

By its April 30 year end, the company’s net assets increased to £6.3m, compared with £5.8m at the beginning of the year.

Since the year end, the company has separated the newsagent and petrol station forecourt businesses by selling the latter to a new parent company, Synergie Holdings, which is owned by the same directors. It paid £7.5m for the business, which is responsible for around 90% of turnover.

The group employs around 270 people.