Adrian Portelli has teased an LMCT+ Petrol launch in Adelaide after his company was fined $40,000 over unlawful lotteries in South Australia.

Billionaire Adrian Portelli has launched a swipe at a South Australian politician while teasing expansion of his cut-price petrol empire.

The Block buyer offered politician Andrea Michaels a job to cover her legal costs, just months after his company was fined $40,000 over unlawful lotteries in the state.

“If you need a job to cover your legal costs, we’re hiring,” Mr Portelli wrote from his verified Instagram account.

The comment came after the LMCT+ Instagram account posted a graphic declaring: “Coming to Adelaide, SA. LMCT Petrol is on the way.”
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“They thought they could get rid of us out of SA … SOUTH AUSTRALIA FIRE UP, LMCT+ is coming back,” the post read.

The move marks Mr Portelli’s latest attempt to turn LMCT+ into a cost-of-living business spanning fuel, groceries and member discounts.

It also gives the Melbourne billionaire another national flashpoint after the first season of his renovation show My Reno Rules wrapped on Tuesday night.

Mr Portelli was found not guilty of nine charges relating to unlawful lotteries in South Australia.

His company Xclusive Tech, trading as LMCT+, was found guilty of 10 charges and fined $40,000.

Adrian Portelli wrapped Seven’s My Reno Rules on Tuesday night, months after cementing his national profile with a $15.03m sweep of The Block in 2024. Picture: Seven

South Australian politician Andrea Michaels was targeted by Adrian Portelli in a pointed Instagram comment after LMCT+ teased its Adelaide petrol move. Picture: Keryn Stevens.

The court was told prizes included cash, prestige cars and homes Mr Portelli had bought on The Block.

Magistrate Melanie Burton said there needed to be consequences, noting the business was a commercial enterprise and “not a charity”.

One insider said the Adelaide move would be seen by LMCT+ fans as Mr Portelli planting a flag in the state where authorities had tried to rein in the business.

“Adrian Portelli is f—king taking over Australia, and people need to start realising what they’re watching,” the insider said.

“The man told everyone exactly what he was going to do, and then he went out and bloody did it.

“To his fans, this is more than a petrol station. It’s Portelli planting a flag in the exact place where they thought they’d clipped his wings.”

LMCT+ Petrol customers have already flocked to Preston in Victoria, where cut-price fuel promotions sparked long queues and major online attention.

A concept image for the planned LMCT+ Tarneit site in Victoria, as Adrian Portelli expands his fuel and rewards business beyond Preston.

LMCT+ Petrol is already operating at Preston, where cut-price fuel promotions sparked long queues.

A Tarneit fuel site is also in the works, while the business has moved into supermarkets, with the first LMCT+ supermarket understood to be the IGA in Deer Park.

In that announcement, Mr Portelli told followers: “We’ve got the petrol up and running, pumping millions of litres a month, and now we’ve got the supermarket that’s about to drop.”

Online speculation has already turned to where the first Adelaide fuel site could land, with one commenter claiming a Marion Rd service station was “happening”.

Vanta Advisory buyer’s agent Alex Groh said Adelaide made commercial sense for LMCT+ as a fuel launch market because of its scale and relative affordability.

Vanta Advisory buyer’s agent Alex Groh said Adelaide made commercial sense for LMCT+ as a launch market.

“Adelaide is a strong market,” Mr Groh said.

“It’s a big population centre, with more than two million people, and we’ve seen a lot of investment flow there.”

Mr Groh said Marion Rd would be a logical corridor for a fuel operator if the site had the right exposure.

“Marion Rd is a quality, key arterial road,” he said.

“It depends on the exact area, but if it’s a prominent corner site, that makes sense.”
LMCT+ Petrol has not yet confirmed the site of the first petrol station in South Australia.

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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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Guzman y Gomez is shifting focus back to Australia after dumping its failed US expansion, with commercial property experts tipping a fierce battle for prime suburban fast-food sites.

Fast-food giant Guzman y Gomez is shifting focus to an aggressive 1000-store land grab across Australia after dumping its failed American expansion.

The ASX-listed burrito chain has abandoned its struggling US restaurants and flagged a $US30m ($42m) to $US40m ($56m) hit to exit America and refocus on its core Australian market.

Investors sent GYG shares almost 20 per cent higher on Friday, despite the one-off cost, as the company moved to end a costly six-year push into the world’s biggest fast-food market.
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But commercial property experts say the real battle is now at home, where GYG is chasing prime suburban sites as part of a long-term plan to grow from about 250 Australian restaurants to 1000.

Colliers retail leasing manager Nathan Brown said GYG remained one of the strongest quick-service restaurant tenants in the country, despite its US retreat.

“From an Australian point of view, they only take the A-grade sites,” Mr Brown said.

“They do not take the B-grade, C-grade sites, which some of these other tenants, like Taco Bell or Carl’s Jr, have taken in the past.

“And they’re extremely tough negotiators.

“They’re easy to deal with, but they’re tough negotiators.”

Colliers retail leasing manager Nathan Brown said Guzman y Gomez remained one of Australia’s strongest quick-service restaurant tenants, but its 1000-store target would depend on securing scarce A-grade sites.

Mr Brown said the failed US expansion was unlikely to hurt GYG’s standing with Australian landlords.

“I don’t really think it’s going to affect them, because they’ve built a certain brand here in Australia now,” he said.
“I think in terms of sentiment, the most popular brand in Australia right now is most certainly GYG with consumers, in my opinion.

“Maccas has probably dropped back a bit. KFC has probably dropped back a bit.

“That whole clean, fresh eating campaign that you consistently hear on radio or see on television definitely translates with what the Australian market wants these days.”

Mr Brown said GYG’s 1000-store ambition was real, but finding the right land would be a major challenge as fast-food operators competed with housing developers for scarce suburban blocks.

“Every time a retailer puts a number of stores out there, that’s very much a blue-sky goal,” he said.

“What is the actual realistic chance of that happening? I think it’s a bit lower than that.

Guzman y Gomez founder and co-chief executive Steven Marks has pulled the pin on the chain’s US restaurants after conceding the American expansion would take more time and capital than expected.

“But where that typically comes from is those brands mapping out wish locations where they would like a site.

“And albeit they might like that location, it might be extremely hard to find that piece of real estate in that location.”

He said established suburbs were particularly difficult because the kind of large, prominent blocks fast-food chains wanted were often worth more as residential development sites.

“If I use the example of Caulfield in Victoria, where are you going to find a 2000sq m piece of land where you’re going to be able to build a fast-food restaurant on it over residential or mid-rise residential?” he said.

“You’re not. That’s not the highest and best use for that location.

“So, albeit they want those locations, that doesn’t necessarily mean they can actually materially get it.

“There might be only one or two sites in that whole suburb that relate to the requirements they have.”

Steven Marks said the US business was unlikely to justify further shareholder investment, with GYG now expected to sharpen its focus on its Australian growth plans.

Mr Brown said GYG’s store target was not just a public relations number.

“From dealing with them, that 1000 number is bang on,” he said.

“I was in a meeting with them two days ago and that was reiterated, that the 1000 mark is the number they want to hit.

“So it’s practically happening on the ground as well and not just a number that’s put out there in the consumer and media world.”

Guzman y Gomez has abandoned its Chicago restaurants after a costly six-year push into the US, but its Australian store ambitions remain firmly on the menu.

Alba Prop director Tom Mifsud said GYG’s American exit showed even successful Australian food brands could not assume their local model would translate overseas.

“What works here is not a pick-and-drop exercise into different countries,” Mr Mifsud said.

“That means costs, wages, product type, product positioning, the makeup of the food, the whole lot.

“So there are lessons learned on both sides.”

Alba Prop director Tom Mifsud said GYG’s US exit showed Australian brands could not simply drop a local fast-food model into overseas markets and expect it to work.

Mr Mifsud said the company’s US retreat would become a test case for other Australian companies with global ambitions.

“What you will find is that GYG’s expansion becomes a great test case for other ambitious entrepreneurs and business owners who are looking to globalise,” he said.

“When they go overseas and look to deploy their product, they can avoid those learnings, make it less costly, and capitalise on the learning.”

Guzman y Gomez has about 250 Australian restaurants and is chasing a long-term 1000-store target, putting it in a growing fight for suburban sites with major fast-food rivals. Picture: Brendan Radke

He said he did not expect the failed US expansion to damage GYG in Australia, where the brand was already well understood by consumers.

“GYG is here. We know it, we understand it,” he said.

“People get behind great Aussie ventures, and it’s iconic to the Aussie brand.

“People look at the brand and affiliate it with Australians, and that’s what we’re all about.”

GYG’s renewed Australian focus comes as the local fast-food market becomes increasingly crowded, with El Jannah, Grill’d, Zambrero, Taco Bell, Betty’s Burgers, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, KFC and Hungry Jack’s all competing for customers and prime suburban locations.

The US might have rejected GYG, but its next fight will be much closer to home.

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