Discussion
In GG forum there is a thread about petrol brands that are no longer.
Does anyone remember the Action brand in the late 80s. They were quite a bit cheaper than the mainstream brands and existed before the supermarkets. The one we used was in Pencoed and I recall the owner of the chain had a Testarossa with the reg ACT 10N.
Anyone else remember this, or have anything interesting to add? They just disappeared - I assume because of the supermarkets?
Does anyone remember the Action brand in the late 80s. They were quite a bit cheaper than the mainstream brands and existed before the supermarkets. The one we used was in Pencoed and I recall the owner of the chain had a Testarossa with the reg ACT 10N.
Anyone else remember this, or have anything interesting to add? They just disappeared - I assume because of the supermarkets?
That would be Curly Humphreys who owned Action.
He's the man who took-on AND upset the 'Big Boys' ESSO, SHELL etc at their own game.
He sold the cheapest Fuel and at it's peak he was impoting 1 million gallons every 10 days through Barry Docks, and then being delivering to his Action Garages with his own fleet of tankers.
After constant pressure from the 'Big Boys', he finaly sold-out in 1990 to Gulf for around £17million.
He also had South Wales Car Discount on Ninian Park Road Cardiff, I think now it's called Jeff White Motors.
He's the man who took-on AND upset the 'Big Boys' ESSO, SHELL etc at their own game.
He sold the cheapest Fuel and at it's peak he was impoting 1 million gallons every 10 days through Barry Docks, and then being delivering to his Action Garages with his own fleet of tankers.
After constant pressure from the 'Big Boys', he finaly sold-out in 1990 to Gulf for around £17million.
He also had South Wales Car Discount on Ninian Park Road Cardiff, I think now it's called Jeff White Motors.
Edited by trv8 on Wednesday 2nd January 05:54
Edited by trv8 on Wednesday 2nd January 05:59
Edited by trv8 on Wednesday 2nd January 06:01
I do recall his tankers weren't always the best quality, many people had issues at one time with water getting mixed in with the petrol. It was cheap fuel, used to have mates come down from Reading on a regular basis who couldn't believe how little it cost to brim the tank.
Anybody know how many stations he had? Recall there being one in Ammanford in addition to a few in Swansea.
Anybody know how many stations he had? Recall there being one in Ammanford in addition to a few in Swansea.
Ah! With the help on the name, have just found this! A very interesting guy. Died at 85; he must have started getting big with the fuel well into his 60s.
‘Curly’ the petrol king is mourned
Jan 31 2008 by Ben Glaze, South Wales Echo
ONE of Wales’ richest businessmen has died at the age of 85.
Cut-price petrol king Donald “Curly” Humphries, who once employed 280 staff across South Wales, passed away at Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny, last Saturday.
Humphries’ chain of petrol stations, Action, consistently offered the UK’s cheapest fuel at its 32 outlets in the 1980s.
The tycoon grew up in Oxford Street, Nantgarw, near Caerphilly, and left school with no qualifications.
He started work as a van boy for David Morgan’s department store in The Hayes before setting up a used-car business when he was just 22.
Later he branched out into selling petrol, under-cutting multinational oil giants. As pump prices rose across Britain, Humphries insisted on offering motorists the cheapest fuel around.
He also ran South Wales Car Discount in Ninian Park Road and a finance company called Ace Securities.
At the height of his success the flamboyant father of two, who lived at a mansion in The Avenue, Llandaff, Cardiff, imported a million gallons of petrol every 10 days from Rotterdam through Barry Docks, distributing it via his fleet of 12 tankers.
His forecourts, from Cross Hands to Chepstow, generated an annual turnover of £110m.
But his long-running battle with the major companies finally ended in 1990 when Humphries sold the firm to Gulf for a reported £17m.
He semi-retired after the sale of Action, netting an estimated £20,000 a week in interest. Humphries led a colourful life. In 1991 he launched the weekly newspaper News of Wales, based in Aberdare, but shut it after just 26 issues.
That December he part-exchanged an £85,000 Bentley for a £88,750 Rolls Royce Silver Spirit II, but later launched legal action against the prestige dealer claiming there were more than 30 faults with the Rolls.
And a year later he settled a £750,000 VAT bill with the Inland Revenue. Humphries also had a run-in with the law: his licence was taken away for six months for careless driving, which he denied.
He famously looked after those he liked – every year he bought his gardener and housekeeper new cars.
He and wife Elisabeth both drove luxury vehicles including Bentleys and a Ferrari Testarossa with personalised plate. One such registration was VPM 1 – Very Popular Man
His base in the capital, which Humphries bought in 1958, boasted a dance floor, snooker table, swimming pool, bar and sauna, and he also owned an apartment in Tenerife.
He spent the last years of his life in Abergavenny. Humphries leaves sons Graham and John, five grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His funeral is on Wednesday at Gwent Crematorium at 2pm.
‘Curly’ the petrol king is mourned
Jan 31 2008 by Ben Glaze, South Wales Echo
ONE of Wales’ richest businessmen has died at the age of 85.
Cut-price petrol king Donald “Curly” Humphries, who once employed 280 staff across South Wales, passed away at Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny, last Saturday.
Humphries’ chain of petrol stations, Action, consistently offered the UK’s cheapest fuel at its 32 outlets in the 1980s.
The tycoon grew up in Oxford Street, Nantgarw, near Caerphilly, and left school with no qualifications.
He started work as a van boy for David Morgan’s department store in The Hayes before setting up a used-car business when he was just 22.
Later he branched out into selling petrol, under-cutting multinational oil giants. As pump prices rose across Britain, Humphries insisted on offering motorists the cheapest fuel around.
He also ran South Wales Car Discount in Ninian Park Road and a finance company called Ace Securities.
At the height of his success the flamboyant father of two, who lived at a mansion in The Avenue, Llandaff, Cardiff, imported a million gallons of petrol every 10 days from Rotterdam through Barry Docks, distributing it via his fleet of 12 tankers.
His forecourts, from Cross Hands to Chepstow, generated an annual turnover of £110m.
But his long-running battle with the major companies finally ended in 1990 when Humphries sold the firm to Gulf for a reported £17m.
He semi-retired after the sale of Action, netting an estimated £20,000 a week in interest. Humphries led a colourful life. In 1991 he launched the weekly newspaper News of Wales, based in Aberdare, but shut it after just 26 issues.
That December he part-exchanged an £85,000 Bentley for a £88,750 Rolls Royce Silver Spirit II, but later launched legal action against the prestige dealer claiming there were more than 30 faults with the Rolls.
And a year later he settled a £750,000 VAT bill with the Inland Revenue. Humphries also had a run-in with the law: his licence was taken away for six months for careless driving, which he denied.
He famously looked after those he liked – every year he bought his gardener and housekeeper new cars.
He and wife Elisabeth both drove luxury vehicles including Bentleys and a Ferrari Testarossa with personalised plate. One such registration was VPM 1 – Very Popular Man
His base in the capital, which Humphries bought in 1958, boasted a dance floor, snooker table, swimming pool, bar and sauna, and he also owned an apartment in Tenerife.
He spent the last years of his life in Abergavenny. Humphries leaves sons Graham and John, five grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His funeral is on Wednesday at Gwent Crematorium at 2pm.
SAB888 said:
Yes, remember the chain and Testarossa, saw it quite a bit. Think the Laleston garage(s) was Action. Didn't he just sell out in the end? He did a lot to bring prices down.
Ah, was that on the A48 either side of the dual carriageway? Now a curry house or something another?Small Car said:
SAB888 said:
Yes, remember the chain and Testarossa, saw it quite a bit. Think the Laleston garage(s) was Action. Didn't he just sell out in the end? He did a lot to bring prices down.
Ah, was that on the A48 either side of the dual carriageway? Now a curry house or something another?
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