Pakistan

Petrol stations owned by Muslim family remove alcohol from shelves

The petrol stations are part of the fast growing Euro Garages, which has 350 petrol stations across the country

News Desk January 23, 2016

PHOTO: MAIL ONLINE

A Muslim family has taken over hundreds of petrol stations across the United Kingdom and removed alcohol from its shelves.

Following the takeover, brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa ordered for the removal of alcohol from sale from all the stations.

The petrol stations are part of the fast growing Euro Garages, which has 350 petrol stations across the country. The business worth £1.3billion and has embarked on an aggressive expansion plan which includes procurement of petrol stations previously run by the likes of British Petroleum, Esso and Shell.

Muslim woman doused in alcohol in UK

Following the takeover, the new owners, who are one of Britain’s most successful Muslim families, have removed displays selling wine, beer and spirits.

While there have been suggestions that the ban was enforced for religious reasons, the company said it did not think it was ethical to sell alcohol to people who are driving.

Euro Garages has a partnership with a several household name brands, including Spar, Greggs, Burger King, Subway and Starbucks.

Considerable loss of sales and profit due to the decision of banning alcohol has not stalled the success of the company.

Muslim truck drivers fired for refusing to deliver beer awarded $240,000

The company was founded by both brothers in 2001 with a single petrol filling station in Bury, Greater Manchester. Only 15 years ago they were working in a petrol station in Halifax, stock-taking and cleaning the toilets.

However, the brothers took a lease on a local garage with their combined savings of £5,000 and today they control a business with an appraised worth of nearly £1.3billion.

The decision sparked conversation across social media.

Petrol station firm owned by Muslim family bans alcohol from shelveshttps://t.co/Rsvk1bpVAn via @MailOnline
— jackie stuart (@auldcove) January 23, 2016

https://twitter.com/malcolm2607/status/690769468742635521

dtn uK: Euro Garages owned by Muslim family bans alcohol from shop shelves: Hundreds of petrol station shops a... https://t.co/UF8tAHtXMA
— DTN UK (@DTNUK) January 23, 2016

This article originally appeared on Mail Online

COMMENTS (43)

ShamelessPakistanis | 8 years ago | Reply @Bunny Rabbit: Its NOT a LAW to sell Alcohol in Gas Stations. You can or CANNOT sell its totally up to the person who owns the gas station. Inferiority Complexed Westernized Pakistani.

Vikram | 8 years ago | Reply I am sure that is a good news for other shops that sell alcohol. I hope immigration keeps checking these gas stations for illegal employees. Tax department should make sure these guys pay taxes.

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ram | 8 years ago | Reply @Asian: Judging by your reasonable logic, why don't such stores sell cigarette lighters when I surely won't light up a smoke there?

Chacha Jee | 8 years ago | Reply Ban alcohol. Now ban non Muslim too. Then among Muslim ban women without burqa, men without beard and shalwar, maybe Shias, definitely Ahemdias.....It is a private business and as an owner, one has right to refuse service

Dr Priyanka | 8 years ago | Reply They are the owners and it's their decision ultimately. Why should anyone bother as long as they are peaceful law abiding citizens. Just google the name Anjali Ramkissoon and you would know how alcohol can mess up with your lives.

Iqbal | 8 years ago | Reply @Rex Minor: The laws of UK also permits me or someone to open a pork butchery or a gay bar next to the petrol station. The owners may not like but I have not broken any laws. That is something similar to what happened at ground zero where they wanted to have a mosque but plans were shelved once they knew who their neighbours were. In a nutshell respect the sentiments of the local population. No one put a gun on these brothers to come to UK. I any case I wish you could say something similar about Ahmadiyas in Pakistan whose business are boycotted by Muslims. Like the UK brothers they have not broken any laws.

Asian | 8 years ago | Reply If I buy toilet paper, it doesn't mean I am going to take a dump in the car. Same goes for the alcohol I purchase.

Rex Minor | 8 years ago | Reply @DR SUNIL J RAO: You sir are a man without a religion but should understand that; all human knowledge emanates from the scriptures and are the basis of todays moral codex of the European civilisation. There are those who simply act like soldiers and follow what is outlined in scriptures but there are others who follow the codex out of conviction and using common sense. Rex Minor

Rex Minor | 8 years ago | Reply @basil: The law of the land doesn't say that you have to sell alcohol in a gas station, instead the law say that you can sell alcohol. Be careful, there is a restriction in selling hours, whereas the gas stations are open 24 hours. Rex Minor

Vivek | 8 years ago | Reply Now who ever need booz when driving home will not go for their stations including the Muslims who drink.End of the day the British drinking communities will by pass this stations and the brothers are going to lose money.

Koreja | 8 years ago | Reply Good will benefit others more as less ppl will die from drunk driving

DR SUNIL J RAO | 8 years ago | Reply This is a case of taking religious rules too seriously in UK..my religious rules have more importance than your choice to drink or not.

RANGANATHA | 8 years ago | Reply nothing wrong with it, let all other follow it for safety,

Haji Atiya | 8 years ago | Reply All they had to do was not renew their Sale of Liquor license, which I believe has to be renewed periodically.

tunre | 8 years ago | Reply What good does alcohol do? NONE. What good do bullets do? NONE. Accessories to crime should be removed from ones store voluntarily. They removed the stalls, did not "ban" anything per se. Anti-Muslim mafia needs just a tiny speck of dirt to sling tons of mud on us. Even random nobodies are commenting here with rage. A billionaire called Donald Dump can do anything, but a billionaire Muslim cant remove alcohol?

Raghu | 8 years ago | Reply @Woz Ahmed: Why not. They can buy and sell anything they want under the laws. If any one have a problem with them then they can open a meat shop!

Muhammad Awais | 8 years ago | Reply I don't think so we should be associated it with religion, when we talk about society than we shouldn't sell any thing which cause of social harm. Drinking even illegal for driver so if alcohol is banned only on filling station than at least drivers will save from accident, and even Govt should adore this decision taken by these Muslim brothers.

Raghu | 8 years ago | Reply @Parvez: It would be their decision. Dont worry about future hypothesis.

Polpot | 8 years ago | Reply @Telh: Dont you worry. Those who help others remove evil from society, they never go down.

Mamu | 8 years ago | Reply Great move by them. Why does media have to point out that they are muslims. It can say that they are concerned businessmen. It is media who likes to play tricks.

IndianDude | 8 years ago | Reply Nothing wrong with it if the owners don't won't to sell alcohol. Just don't give religion as excuse as it sets a bad precedence. How is it different from non-muslim in UK not allowing/disliking muslims (especially from Pakistan) due to their large(unethical) criminal acts in UK.

Telh | 8 years ago | Reply This should be interesting. The loss of revenue from grog sales will have effect. Maybe they will go broke.

Ramiz Allawala | 8 years ago | Reply What's the big deal? The Amish entrepreneurs in the USA have built world class enterprises based on their faith. Their model is now the subject of serious academic research.

Hannatu | 8 years ago | Reply Obviously, the decision didn't affect their business and people can still buy alcohol in the UK. So, what's the problem?

Skywalker | 8 years ago | Reply Let us see how the business goes. I bet they will not sell any pork products either. I see an opportunity by other petrol station owners to sell alcohol and non-Halal products. Let us not come up with excuses and conspiracy theories if the business starts going south.

kharal | 8 years ago | Reply Good show alcohol poses a threat to life and causes accidents. its good initiative to ban this social disturbance of being drunk altogether

globalobserver | 8 years ago | Reply Another example of Muslim immigrants imposing their ideology on their host countries.

Ali | 8 years ago | Reply Iqbal, are you made you wont get your alcohol.

basil | 8 years ago | Reply @Bunny Rabbit:

             The law of the land doesn't say that you have to sell alcohol in a gas station, instead the law say that you can sell alcohol.The brothers choose not to sell it, by doing so they are not breaking any law, any criticism as such is totally unjustified..

Parvez | 8 years ago | Reply Playing the devil's advocate..... IF there were a law requiring all petrol pumps to sell alcohol in the UK, would the brothers then close down their business ?

HZR | 8 years ago | Reply Amazing that these guys go lands where the life is different only to recreate the lifestyle they left behind!

Jag Nathan | 8 years ago | Reply Big Deal. The only folks who are gong to suffer are British Muslims. The gulf between the, and the UK population just widens a little more. Job opportunities for young Muslim men & women shrink a little more as the native population decides they will rather not employ these folks.

babu | 8 years ago | Reply Very good decision. In a free Economy, people decide what they want to sell. If Muslim owners do not want to sell alcohol, then that is their choice. Welcome to real freedom.

Rex Minor | 8 years ago | Reply There is nothing muslimness about this act; the sale or consumption of alcohal in all bible belt counties of the usa is bidden. Rex Minor

Woz Ahmed | 8 years ago | Reply Amazing success story, these Gujaratis know how to make money. Not sure if this is a good business decision, but they seem to know what they are doing. Not all petRol stations sell alcohol, but it is the culture of the U.K. To buy alcohol, as and when. Interestingly will they ban pork products next ?

pro bono publico | 8 years ago | Reply Is it ethical to sell alcohol to those who are driving when there is no guarantee that the buyer will not drink it while driving?

John B | 8 years ago | Reply I support the decision. There is no law or custom that they have to sell alcohol in a gas station. Gas station makes a good profit from its convenience store sales than gas. Alcohol is just one another product with little profit margin but occupies more space. I am sure they will put in other products of various kinds in the cleared space to make up the lost revenue. What comes out of it ? A good thing. If I were an unscrupulous business man, I will open a chain a liquor store next to the gas stations to pick up their lost market share! I am sure the business might have made a lot of money by selling the alcohol license it already owns or saved a lot by surrendering it!

Iqbal | 8 years ago | Reply I live in UK and will NOT be filling up my car at their pumps. Where I fill my car is my decision and not theirs.

Candy Bubbles | 8 years ago | Reply Well said Bunny Rabbit. I do not live in my birth country, I live in a Catholic one - I respect their values and try to fit in. If I felt I could not do this I would go back where I came from.

Bunny Rabbit | 8 years ago | Reply This is what is called - NOT being a Roman in Rome . Go by the laws of the land I say - not by the rules of your religion.

Malik Saab | 8 years ago | Reply The examples like these are creating the real scare and hatred on the ground in UK.I am afraid such examples will close the doors of all Pakistanis not only in UK but in general to US, Canada and Europe in general. When the challenge the customs of one country, then do not expect that Multi-multiculturalism will be expected anymore. When we reach the shores of some other country, then we have to agree with their customs. If a Non Muslims have to eat only Halal meat in Pakistan and he cannot openly sell Alcohol, then kindly respect it vice versa. Otherwise the differences will be too much and we will be marginalized in the world.

hari | 8 years ago | Reply Indian origin people are successful generally.

Rocky | 8 years ago | Reply Nothing wrong in it, I think we should welcome the Muslim brothers decision!

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