Lincolnshire retailer Tom Dant, managing director of Gill Marsh Forecourts, has re-signed a long-term agreement with Spar across his largest and best-performing stores. The decision covers four Spar sites within his five-store estate, all supplied by AF Blakemore.
Estate details and store formats
Tom Dant and his sister Lois Dant operate a five-site estate across Lincolnshire, with four of these trading as Spar stores. The portfolio includes a mix of forecourt and standalone convenience stores, each tailored to its local community. The Spar sites are Bilsby Filling Station, Partney Filling Station, Ulceby Cross and Louth.
Bilsby operates as a village convenience store with a Post Office and strong local supplier partnerships. Partney serves coastal traffic and holidaymakers with caravan essentials, world foods and specialist ranges. Ulceby Cross, the flagship site, has undergone a major expansion to become a destination store with seating, Wi-Fi and a high-performing food-to-go offer under the Tom's Kitchen brand. Louth operates as a standalone convenience store serving the town centre.
Reasons for re-signing
After reviewing the market and each store's performance, Dant chose to continue his long-standing partnership with Spar. He said the decision was driven by sustained sales growth, strong commercial terms and the flexibility Spar offers independent retailers.
"We've looked closely at the market and at how each of our stores is performing. SPAR has consistently delivered – commercially, operationally and through the well-received refit programme," Dant said.
"Ulceby redevelopment pushed the site beyond £60k a week, which gave us huge confidence in what Spar and AF Blakemore can help us achieve. Re-signing was absolutely the right decision for our business. We've built a strong partnership with AF Blakemore and I'm looking forward to continuing this relationship."
Partnership and support
Dant's sister Lois, who manages Ulceby Cross, and business partner Gill, who co-owns the estate, have also been closely involved in the decision to re-sign. This reinforces the long-standing relationship between the family-run business and AF Blakemore.
AF Blakemore's BTP+ programme has supported the estate's development, offering commercial advantages, operational expertise and a refit model that has helped Dant elevate both forecourt and convenience formats.
Tom Blakemore, retail sales director at AF Blakemore, said: "Tom is a highly respected operator across both forecourt and convenience retail, and we're delighted he has chosen to continue his journey with Spar."
"His decision to keep his largest and highest-performing stores under the Spar fascia shows the strength of our partnership and the confidence he has in our commercial model. We're committed to supporting Tom's growth for the long term."
