Adrian Portelli has teased Tarneit as the next target in his LMCT+ petrol rollout, after his Preston site turned cheap fuel into a political flashpoint. Picture: Instagram/LMCT+
Adrian Portelli has teased Tarneit in Melbourne’s west as LMCT+’s next cut-price petrol target.
The move comes as his fuel empire prepares to push into Melbourne’s southeast.
It comes as LMCT+ Petrol told followers on Instagram: “Tarneit FIRE UP! Locked and loaded. We’re coming to the west.”
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Mr Portelli then jumped into the comments, writing: “South East we hear you.”
The mocked-up image appears to match the Shell service station at 380 Sayers Rd, Tarneit, next to Wyndham Village Shopping Centre.
The centre directory shows the service station sits beside a major suburban retail mix including Coles, Aldi, Chemist Warehouse, Specsavers, Jetts 24 Hour Fitness, Commonwealth Bank, Vodafone, Subway, a medical centre and food court.
LMCT+ has not confirmed whether that specific Sayers Rd site is the next petrol station or when the Tarneit operation would open.
Wyndham Village Shopping Centre in Tarneit is home to Coles, Aldi, Chemist Warehouse, Specsavers, Jetts, food outlets and a Shell service station. Picture: Supplied
Adrian Portelli told followers LMCT+ Petrol was “coming to the west” as he flagged Tarneit and Melbourne’s southeast in his fuel push. Picture: Instagram/adrian_portelli Picture: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images
But Mr Portelli’s video made clear the latest tease was focused on fuel.
“When the higher ups throw stones, you pick up bigger ones and you throw them back,” he said.
“Let’s go, baby. Tarneit.
“Tarneit, fire up. We are coming. We are coming LMCT+ Petrol. We coming to the west, baby.
“And southeast, we haven’t forgotten about you. We’ve got something special about to drop as well.”
The post triggered a wave of suburb requests from followers keen for Mr Portelli’s members-only fuel model to spread beyond Preston.
“GC next please,” one follower wrote.
Another commented: “Now it’s time to come to Sydney.”
The Shell service station on Sayers Rd, Tarneit, sits beside Wyndham Village Shopping Centre in one of Melbourne’s fastest-growing suburban corridors. Picture: Supplied
LMCT+ posted this mocked-up image of a Tarneit petrol station with a fuel board showing 91 unleaded at 99.9c a litre. Picture: Instagram/LMCT+
The Tarneit clue marks the latest step in Mr Portelli’s push to turn LMCT+ into a suburban essentials empire spanning petrol, groceries, drinks and paid memberships.
His Preston petrol station has become one of Melbourne’s most-watched retail sites after heavily discounted offers, including fuel as low as 49.99c a litre, drew huge queues, police attention and questions in state parliament.
The Preston site has since continued changing prices, including cutting diesel below $2 a litre after drivers asked for a better deal.
Mr Portelli has also said strong shop sales were helping offset fuel losses, revealing his signature drink Flipside’s sales at the one-month-old Preston site had hit 22 per cent of the drink’s sales across 752 7-Eleven stores.
LMCT+ Petrol launched in Preston with cut-price fuel that drew huge queues, police attention and questions in state parliament before the Tarneit tease. Picture: NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw
LL Tax and Accounting director Louie Loizides said cheap fuel could help drive motorists into LMCT+ memberships and higher-margin shop sales. Picture: Supplied
LL Tax and Accounting director Louie Loizides previously said the cheap petrol push could work as a customer-acquisition play if it pushed motorists into memberships, drinks and higher-margin shop sales.
“You’re going to be brought in by a low cost of petrol, which is fantastic,” Mr Loizides said.
“But the idea as well is you’re going to start buying other things, other products that the station is selling, your chips, your chocolates, whatever it might be.
“Plus, he’s got that membership fee coming in too.”
Vanta Advisory business owner and ALBA Commercial partner Alex Groh said the LMCT+ model could make servos look more like retail destinations. Picture: Supplied
Vanta Advisory business owner and ALBA Commercial partner Alex Groh previously said Mr Portelli’s model could make investors look at a petrol station less like a fuel site and more like a retail destination.
“If they’ve got a really good convenience model, and they’re less reliant on petrol and can pivot easily when the time comes to electric, I think it’s certainly more attractive to commercial investors,” Mr Groh said.
But Mr Groh said the model would be hard for other fuel operators to copy because it relied heavily on Mr Portelli’s personal brand.
“I think it’s quite unique what he’s done,” he said.
“He leveraged a very, very strong personal brand.”
Mr Portelli has said strong Flipside drink sales at Preston were helping offset cheap fuel losses and build the broader LMCT+ retail model. Picture: Instagram/LMCT+
The Tarneit clue comes after Mr Portelli revealed his planned LMCT+ supermarkets would be folded into the company’s existing $99 petrol saver membership, which is set to be renamed the “Everyday Saver” membership.
The company’s first supermarket is understood to be IGA Deer Park, after distinctive interiors from the Hatchlands Drive store appeared in Mr Portelli’s reveal video.
The latest tease puts Tarneit firmly in the frame for LMCT+ Petrol, with Melbourne’s southeast also next on the cheap fuel map.
LMCT+ has been contacted for comment.
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