Ron Perry & Son background history
Company history
Established for over 40 years
- pre1960: “Gunnersvale” building on the northbound of what was commonly known as “Sunderland Road” was used as a café / truck stop facility with a bed & breakfast service available. Gunnersvale has been a prominent landmark on ordinance survey maps since the 1950’s
- 1961: Owner Luigi De Ferrati installed petrol pumps and sold fuel under an agreement with Esso as supplier
- 1964: Sunderland Road as a single lane road was converted into a trunk road as the A19 it is known today linking North-Eastern locations such as Tyneside, Wearside and Teesside to the rest of the country and providing an access route to Eastern Scotland.
- 1965: Alfred Appleby purchased Gunnersvale from Mr Ferrati and closed down the café / bed & breakfast facility to convert the space it occupied into vehicle workshops with a compound facility at the rear of the site intended for storage
- 1969: Due to the bypass of the A19 intersecting properties of George Howe at Sheraton, he purchased the Gunnersvale petrol station and signed a 50 year lease with Esso as fuel supplier. Howe also ran his tuning service from the workshops and modernised the drains in anticipation of increased public usage. George Howe also purchased the farmland on the opposite side of the road to Gunnersvale to become the future site of the Southbound service station
- 1970: Ronald Perry (Senior.) and wife Elizabeth Anne invested in the petrol station / workshops located on the Northbound site previously known as Gunnersvale utilising funds from the sale of their house and took up tenancy in the flat above the forecourt with their son and daughter who ran the forecourts in an increasingly busy business
- 1974: Southbound Petrol Station constructed under Esso’s stewardship to capitalise on petrol sales as a subsequent result of the boom in traffic
- 1975: G. Howe relocated his tuning business to the brand new purpose-built Test & Tune workshops behind the Southbound Service Station
- 1976: Ron Perry Junior loaned £300 from his parents to buy a Jaguar 340 (of the type featured in the Inspector Morse television programme). A customer in the petrol station saw it on site and made an enquiry about whether Ron would be interested in selling it. Ron was reluctant to sell so the customer offered a swap exchange deal of a Ford Transit van with a trailer and a stock car for the Jaguar. After a few months of racing the stock car on the local circuit, a customer from Ron Perry Senior’s workshops broke down and Ron Perry Junior recovered the vehicle using the Transit and trailer. The stock car was subsequently sold for £300 and Ron Perry & Son Breakdown and Recovery was born
- 1977: Dart Oil Co. a subsidiary of Esso invested in the sites and as a clause of their agreement took control of the running of the sites. Ron Perry Junior’s expanding recovery company ran the administration for it upstairs on the Northbound
- 1978: Ron Perry & Son LTD was formed and management of the Petrol stations transferred to Ron Perry Senior and ran under a licensee agreement with Esso.
- 1983: With the passing away of Ron Perry Senior, Ron Perry Junior assumed sole management of the Petrol stations under the existing licensee agreement with Esso
- 1984: Ron Perry’s Recovery & Breakdown service volume increased turnover of fuel on the sites
- 1986: To keep up with technological advances the old style manual tills on both sites were updated to link the pumps via computer to the tills under the Microlec / Edicom system
- 1989: Northbound site was refitted with modern pumps and a complete renovation of the interior shop floor as well as further modernisation of the tills. The business continued to run out of a temporary facility on site whilst building work was carried out. Ron Perry A19 Test & Tune LTD was formed
- 1991: Riding & Livery Business opens at Stotfold Crest Stables to the rear of Southbound
- 1996: Ron Perry Jnr purchased Test & Tune from George Howe. As part of his plans to expand the businesses the administration offices for the Service Stations as well as the North-side workshops and the breakdown company were re-located from their location on the Northbound site to the new purpose-built Test & Tune expansion facility
- 1997: After lengthy negotiations Ron Perry Jnr purchased North & South petrol stations from G. Howe. Fina replaced Esso as fuel supplier and Southbound expanded to incorporate more floor and confectionery space plus indoor toilet
- 1998: Due to increased HGV volume North and Southbound canopies raised from 3.8 metres to 4.8
- 1999: Stotfold Crest Stables indoor riding school constructed to ½ size Olympic Dressage specifications
- 2000: As a result of Total’s acquisition of Fina in the take-over that amalgamated Fina and Elf into the Total company, both Service Stations changed their colours and H-signs into Total colours as a result with Total as Fuel supplier. Planning permission submitted to construct a café on Northbound
- 2001: New Diesel pumps and Diesel lanes were constructed on the Northbound site to further facilitate increased HGV activity as well as an LPG gas-pump being installed. Stotfold Crest Stables indoor riding school constructed to full size Olympic Dressage specifications. Billingham Auto’s LTD is incorporated into A19 Test & Tune LTD
- 2002: Café A19 opens on the Northbound site. Planning begins on development of the site to include restaurants and motel / hotel facilities on Northbound and Southbound
- 2003: Planning permission granted to convert the space above A19 Northbound into a motel facility with a 10 standard Bedroom and 1 Disabled Bedroom capacity (which was never completed)
- 2004: OK Diners sign a lease for a fast food facility on the Southbound site. Installation begins on new Diesel Lanes to the rear of Southbound
- 2005: Phase 1 of Southbound redevelopment completed – New Diesel Lanes Constructed.
- 2005: Plans submitted for Phase 2 of Southbound redevelopment - replace existing antiquated shop with a new purpose-built 21m x 12m two-story facility comprising large shop, café, toilets, shower facilities and offices.
- 2006: Construction on Phase 2 begins. Plans submitted for motels and restaurants on North and Southbound sites.
- 2007: Phase 2 of Southbound redevelopment completed (New Shop & Diesel Lanes – Sept 07) including new Café A19 Southbound. Planning application for additional restaurant / takeaway facility on southbound and marketing. Planning submitted to expand riding and livery facilities at Stotfold Crest Stables
- 2008: Motel and Restaurant plans confirmed and marketed. Planning Application for a Subway© Sandwiches facility on North and Southbound.
- 2008: Change branding and fuel supplier from Total to BP. Service Stations now accept the BP Bunkering card as well as providing Nectar Points to customers. Northbound building exterior re-clad with white panelling for a more modern BP look
- 2009: Planning permission for new £500 million hospital development at Wynyard 2 miles away from the site granted. Infrastructure development commences for Subway© Sandwiches Eat-in and Drive Through facilities on North and Southbound. Additional Diesel lanes added to Northbound and LPG Gas pumps installed on Southbound
- 2010: As part of a green initiative the company has explored the possible implementation of wind turbines at the site
- 2010/11: Extend A19 Test & Tune to incorporate purchase of a bodyshop business to complement existing Breakdown and Recovery facilities
- 2011: Proposed start date for construction to begin on Motel sites North and Southbound
- 2012: Hospital at Wynyard as well as the new 2nd Tyne Tunnel to be completed adding to the volume of traffic on the A19
Call: 01740 644 223