bp reveals how motorists are fuelling themselves for Christmas

1.6 million hot drinks, 750,000 pastries and over 100,000 pigs in blankets: bp reveals how motorists are fuelling themselves for Christmas
 

• EV charging demand will see bp deliver power equivalent to cooking over 830,000 turkeys.
• Batteries now included: sales of batteries expected to increase 1300%.
• ‘Tis the season: sales of Baileys set to skyrocket 1000%.

As the nation prepares to travel to friends and family for Christmas, bp is getting ready for the seasonal surge as thousands stop off to fuel up, charge their electric vehicles or stock up on food, drink and last-minute gifts. bp will be open late over the festive period for our customers, with all stores open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Hot drinks and pastries

The roadside retailer estimates that in the build up to Christmas Day, it will sell 1.6 million hot drinks in its 300 company owned stores across the UK – that’s around 1 drink per second in the three-week run up to Christmas. Hungry drivers will also snap up 750,000 baked goods, including 300,000 sweet pastries and 200,000 award-winning bacon and cheese turnovers, keeping themselves fuelled for long journeys. The busiest day in stores is expected to be Christmas Eve.

EV charging

As more and more drivers switch to electric cars, the demand for EV charging is also set to soar. In the build up to Christmas, bp expects to deliver around 3.7 million kWh through its EV chargers, which would be enough power to cook over 830,000 Christmas turkeys, around 8% of the nation’s turkey intake over the festive period.

Christmas treats

Data also indicates that Christmas favourites are set to fly off the shelves with 100,000 pigs in blankets, 10,000 bottles of mulled wine and a staggering 1 million bags of Christmas sweets and chocolate, including Christmas Percy Pigs, chocolate coins and popping disco balls. Sales of bottles of Baileys, tipple of the season for many, are expected to see a 1000% uplift in sales compared to a normal sales week.

Last-minute festive essentials

For those who may have left organising their Christmas presents to the last minute, bp is also expecting to shift over 100,000 rolls of wrapping paper and Christmas cards, and 150,000 Christmas gifting tins, during the build-up to Christmas. And with the majority of bp’s company owned stores
open 24/7 it is helping customers avoid the dreaded “batteries not included” disaster, with an expected 1300% uplift in battery sales.

BPme Rewards loyalty customers will benefit from instant savings on a range of products sold in bp stores, including M&S Food and Wild Bean Cafe. BPme Rewards Price discounts will be automatically applied at the till on selected products, when customers scan their BPme Rewards card or app at around 300 bp company-owned retail sites across the UK. Current offers include 20% savings on selected bottles of spirits and 15% off when you buy three bottles of wine, including M&S.

Notes to editors:

Sales data is based on bp’s sales across its ~300 company owned stores for the three weeks preceding Christmas.

EV charging power estimates are based on bp pulse sales for weeks commencing 4, 11 and 18 December 2023, and the standard cooking time for an average UK turkey in an electric oven.

Further information:

bp press office London, bppress@bp.com, +44 7831 095541, +44 7919 217511

About bp

bp delivers energy products and services to our customers around the world. 

Our strategy is to transition to become an integrated energy company across resilient hydrocarbons, mobility and convenience and low carbon energy.  We believe bp can help deliver a better, more balanced, energy system that is secure and affordable as well as increasingly lower carbon.

bp continues to invest in oil and gas to keep energy flowing to where and when it’s needed today. And to invest in our lower carbon and other transition businesses. 

For more information visit www.bp.com