Petrol station staff net 10,000 euros (From Wiltshire Times)

Petrol station staff net 10,000 euros

9:20am Thursday 21st February 2008 in Melksham By Charley Morgan

EMPLOYEES at a petrol station in Melksham have netted thousands of pounds this week after it was named the best of its kind in Europe.

The 14-strong team at Total in Semington Road will be handed a 10,000 euro (£7,552) cheque next week after being named the chain's Best European Retailer, beating off competition from Total's 6,600 branches across the continent.

Store manager Carol Trott, 47, was stunned to receive the news at a glittering award ceremony at the Automobile Club de France in Paris on January 30.

Mrs Trott said: "I just went to take part in the awards, I never imagined that we would win.

"Even then we didn't know about the money that was a bonus we really didn't expect.

"It was the most fantastic evening I've ever been to."

The 24-hour Melksham petrol station was one of six finalists out of 850 stores in the UK round of the competition and was selected to represent the UK for the title of Best European Retailer.

The Melksham staff were then pitted against seven other teams from forecourts across Europe and were judged on their customer service and store standards.

Mrs Trott said: "We had to fill in a questionnaire about what made a good service station.

"They said our answers were everything they were looking for.

"Then people from head office came round and visited many stores and they decided we were the best."

The money was divided up between each of the employees at the Melksham store including Mrs Trott, her deputy and the 12 sales assistants.

She added: "We try extremely hard to make visiting our service station a great experience for our customers, as we are part of their community just as they are part of ours.

"It's great to be recognised for our hard work and effort."

Becky Miller, a regular customer of the Melksham shop, said: "Carol and the team really deserve this award.

"The staff always go out of their way to help any way they can which makes visiting the store a pleasant experience."

Iain Cracknell, marketing manager of Total UK, said: "In all forecourts we strive to provide the best possible customer service, and it's such a fantastic achievement for Melksham to not only be named the best Total forecourt in the UK, but in Europe.

"The team at Melksham should be congratulated on their well deserved win".