DUCKHAMS The Revival of a Brand
Anyone who owned a car in the seventies, or whose parents owned a Rover SDI or Triumph TR7 will know the name Duckhams, the unique ‘Sudan Green’ colour is still remembered by many to this day!
This iconic brand was established in 1899 but took a giant leap forward when in 1951, Alexander Duckham & Co Ltd introduced Europe’s first multigrade engine oil and, advertised as the ‘super lubricant for the motoring connoisseur’, Duckhams Q soon became Europe’s best-selling 20w50 oil. During its heyday, Duckhams led the industry with its Hypergrade lubricant known to millions, and its many motorsport sponsorships, including Formula 1 Team Lotus, the Duckhams-Ford Le Mans Team, Team Surtees and early support for a who’s who of famous drivers: Hill, Coulthard, Irvine, Mansell, Brundle and Senna to name but a few.
Around 40 years after acquiring the brand in 1969, BP elected to rationalise their portfolio and Duckhams Oil was discontinued from all markets globally (although the brand is still produced and sold under a joint venture in Thailand since 1985!).
Spring Petroleum might not be a name that is familiar to those working in the lubricants sector. However, as one of the main regional forecourt retailers in the country, the Yorkshire-based company owned a chain of service stations based in Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Lancashire, turning over £110m. The owners also own and operate a refinery
28 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.139 JUNE 2017
and storage business in the Middle East and this led to their strong desire to build a lubricant brand or, as it turned out, to buy one of strongest heritage lubricants brand names around.
In October 2016, Spring Petroleum, led by Chairman Jabir Sheth and Managing Director Maqsud Patel, together with Operations Director Nick Lyon, agreed to buy Duckhams from BP for an undisclosed sum. At this time the company reluctantly decided to shed its forecourt operations having been approached by a large global hedge fund. Their aim is to now re-establish Duckhams Oil to its rightful position as a premium lubricant brand on a global scale.
Dave Woodman joined the organisation in late 2016, after 25 years in the Industry with Castrol and, in his role as Brand Manager, UK & Ireland he is working with the Directors on the process to re-introduce Duckhams within its core heritage markets. One of Dave’s first actions in joining Duckhams was to contact the United Kingdom Lubricants Association to re-engage the brand in the sector and rejoin the UK industry’s trade association.
Although Duckhams still lives on in the memories of those who owned cars in the sixties and seventies, as well as classic car owners, the brand still has tremendous resonance and emotional capital among sections of motoring enthusiasts. The challenge will be to leverage this brand awareness to help reintroduce Duckhams back into the UK and other markets.
Early evidence of this has been the support given to the only female driver in the WRC Championship, Louise Cook, who would have had to sell her previously hard won trophies to compete in this year’s Championship were it not for the support of Duckhams.
‘Whilst we want to fully embrace the heritage of our brand, at the same time, we also need to position ourselves as a modern, progressive brand relevant to the modern motorist and their vehicle requirements’.
‘Our strategy will be to secure strategic partnerships with key players in the market who recognise the value that Duckhams can bring to their customer offering and want to be part of this exciting journey with us’. Woodman continued ‘these are early days in the development of our plans and we have to ensure that everything we do would meet with the approval of all those who have gone before us in developing this most iconic of British motoring brands’.
For more information contact Dave Woodman on 07734 559228 or email:
dave.woodman@duckhams.co.uk
LINK
www.Duckhams.co.uk
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