FreshStop, the largest and fastest growing convenience retail brand in South Africa, has again reached a major milestone in growth and continues to outpace the rest of the convenience retail industry in South Africa with the opening of its 250th store in Kempton Park in Gauteng. FreshStop at Caltex Croydon officially opened its doors to the public on ing FreshStop brand and the Caltex forecourt now boasts the latest 20/20 imagery, new underground fuel tanks with increased capacity and a larger electricity generator to ensure that the business operates without interruption in case of any electricity outages.
FreshStop at Caltex Croydon, which operates 24/7, features a range of food innovations in-store, such as FreshStop’s in-house fast-food chicken brand, Crispy Chicken, which opened its 30th outlet, as well as a Grill to Go outlet, it’s latest new food brand. To complement the offering, the kitchen produces a selection of hot foods at the Pitstop Cafe that includes homemade pies, freshly baked goods and sandwiches. For those needing a caffeine boost, the full-service Seattle Coffee bar with fully-trained Barista is open for business. This Seattle Coffee Co full-service bar is its 88th outlet to open nationwide.
“We have undergone a radical business transformation underpinned by a desire to meet all our customers’ needs through our dedicated commitment to quality service for our clients. In line with this, we will be offering a halaal food offering to acknowledge and respect the very diverse cultural community that is our client base,” says Lesley Masia, Store Retailer.
To round out the experience, the store also offers a range of fresh fruit and vegetables, an assortment of grocery items, and a wide selection of Grab n Go snacks and cool drinks.
The opening of FreshStop at Caltex Croydon is the culmination of many years of hard work for Store Retailers Lesley and Irene Masia. Starting from humble beginnings, their shared vision inspired by a quest to grow the economy and create employment has led to business success. Lesley Masia possesses a fine and rare balance between academics and business leadership. Formerly a banking and corporate executive, he has co-founded family businesses in retail, catering and hospitality, and is also involved in other petroleum industry ventures and franchised food outlets in Gauteng.
“I believe that our extensive exposure and functioning at a strategic level both in private enterprise and within the SOE environment have given us the ability to take on and revel in the challenge of starting and turning-around businesses, especially in the retail and service sectors,” explains Masia.
Providing services to the community is close to Masia’s heart and he has made sure that specialised services are offered, such as an Aramex courier service, Glocell offering for all networks, airtime and electricity, and the store also acts as a Pargo pick-up point for internet purchases. Two ATMs representing Standard Bank and ABSA are also on-site for additional customer convenience. As Masia puts it, “Our social desire is to integrate fully with the community of Croydon and Isando; and we have already been warmly received by members of the Croydon Business Forum, which we truly appreciate”.
Another way in which FreshStop Croydon is making a difference in the community is by creating employment and developing skills. “Our staff are extremely important and we are committed to offering them opportunities to continuously learn and experience personal growth with inner fulfilment. We have welcomed a lot of new people due to our business expansion and extended trading hours and we are dedicated to protecting and creating more employment as the business continues to grow from strength to strength,” enthuses Masia.
The FreshStop at Caltex Croydon team will be offering customers weekly specials and they have also launched their website, www.caltexcroydon.co.za, to keep locals up-to-date on the latest services and products on offer. “It has been an exciting challenge to rebuild the business and take it to new heights. We strive to be a benchmark of excellence in the industry and to always make sure that our quality and freshness equals value for money,” adds Masia.
FreshStop, named International Convenience Retailer of the Year 2013, is South Africa’s largest and fastest growing 24-hour convenience store brand and has a network of 250 stores countrywide.
For more information:
Website: www.freshstop.co.za
Facebook: www.facebook.com/freshstop
Twitter: @FreshstopSA
Issued by: Byte Media on behalf of: FreshStop
