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Want to see some real-world examples? Read our case studies to learn how we’ve helped clients save money and energy by installing DoubleCOOL doors across the United Kingdom.
Waz’s, Best One West Lothian
Waz’s convenience store has been serving the community of Broxburn, West Lothian for the past 27 years. Open every day, for up to 14 hours a day this one thousand square foot high street shop typically processes 90 transactions a day plus 100 parcel transactions.
Chilled produce is a key seller, with beer and soft drinks sales proving particularly impactful to turnover and margin. These are housed in two Arneg Panama open-fronted refrigerators, one 5m and the other 2.5m, with in-built thermostats.
Unlocking energy saving initiatives
Looking to reduce utility costs and increase the temperature in store, Waz was interested to learn more about energy savings relating to the operating of chiller cabinets.
Initially, the replacement of the chiller cabinets with ones with doors had been considered, but the cost of new units proved prohibitive. He turned to his Business Development Manager, Sharon Olding at the Bestway symbol group for support, and was put in touch with Matt at DoubleCOOL.
Bestway invests in store sustainability
Sharon had attended a presentation by Matt and recommended the retrofit DoubleCOOL door solution to Waz, as an energy saving initiative. Ultimately, the retrofitting the open chillers with DoubleCOOL double-paned acrylic doors was funded by the Bestway store investment initiative. A successful and supportive outcome for both the symbol group and shop owner alike.
Twelve doors in store
After the initial quotation was accepted in mid-December, a site survey was undertaken in mid-January with delivery and installation taking place during trading hours on 26 February.
Scope including the production of profiles which were affixed to the existing cabinets, for the Swing 1 doors to attach to. Waz also took the opportunity to upgrade the chiller lighting to LED, which further enhanced energy savings and was undertaken by the DoubleCOOL installation team as part of the retrofitted fridge door install.
“The door installation was funded by Bestway’s investment initiative, and I would 100% recommend DoubleCOOL, the service and install were first class. Matt was very helpful in explaining the setup, benefits and the ease of installation. The doors are high quality, they look great and the chillers run more smoothly now. Fridge temperature is consistent and the products are much cooler. The ambient store temperature has improved so much, that I’ve even turned the heating off! We’ve had a fabulous reaction to the doors, better than expected. I would have no reservations about recommending DoubleCOOL’s retrofit door solution to other retailers.”
Waz Abbas
Best One – Broxburn, West Lothian
Brunel University, Costcutter store with DoubleCOOL doors
October 2024
Brunel University own and operate a very popular Costcutter store, serving the needs of the university’s staff and students. The retail team are focussed on providing excellent customer service and good quality, value for money products, without the inconvenience of having to leave campus. It’s a busy shop, open for 15 hours a day midweek, and from 9.30am to 7pm at the weekend. The store, measuring 1600sq ft, processes a whopping 750k transactions a year!
Over the summer and particularly during hot weather, the 25.6m of Arneg open chillers were breaching the temperature threshold recorded by the data loggers, and frequently setting off the chiller alarms. This, alongside chiller breakdowns, triggered food quality concerns and caused food wastage. Often, the retail team had to move products around when chillers failed – a frustrating outcome for their regular customer base, who had to search out their usual grab and go purchases.
In August 2024, Head of Retail at Brunel University, Arnaud Leudjou turned to the Costcutter brand for advice. They suggested that DoubleCOOL retrofitted fridge doors could be the solution. After an initial chat with Zoe, a site survey was undertaken, and a proposal was made to install 41 Swing1 doors to the open chillers. Recognising that the benefits of the DoubleCOOL solution outweighed the capital cost, purchase approval was gained from the university, to solve the chiller temperature issues, improve food quality and customer satisfaction.
Despite some hesitation about the potential bottlenecks the hinged doors could cause, as the aisle width is only 1m wide and the doors are 60cm, it was decided to proceed with DoubleCOOL, with a caveat that they could always remove any doors that hindered customer flow.
During mid-October, the understanding and flexible DoubleCOOL installation team fitted the doors over a weekend when the store was less busy, to minimise impact on shoppers. By Monday morning the store opened as usual, with warmer aisles and sleek new-looking fridge doors. So sleek, that one university staff member asked, “How did you manage to get the budget to install new chillers?”. The answer was that they hadn’t, it was simply that the DoubleCOOL doors made the chillers look brand new!
As campus energy costs are centralised, it’s difficult to ascertain exactly what the cost savings are, but Arnaud considers the decision to install DoubleCOOL doors as a “no brainer”. The anticipated bottleneck issues were not realised, as shoppers instinctively move towards the chillers when using the doors, without hindering customer flow and all 41 smart new doors, remain in place.
Since installation, the store hasn’t experienced any chiller breakdowns, fridge temperatures have remained constant, food wastage has reduced and customers are happy to shop without the chiller alarms ringing, and their favourite chilled products constantly moving locations. The DoubleCOOL doors have absolutely solved the chiller issues and have given them a new lease of life, pleasing the retail team and customers alike.
“The installation of DoubleCOOL doors has truly revitalised our chillers. Before we made this upgrade, the temperature of our chillers would fluctuate unpredictably relative to varying weather conditions, making it challenging to keep our chilled food items within the necessary legal temperature limits, especially on hot days. However, since the installation, we’ve experienced a remarkable stability in our chiller temperatures. Both our staff and customers have noticed another benefit: the doors help maintain a more comfortable temperature on the shop floor. I am also eager to see how this improvement will positively affect our utility consumption rates moving forward. The installation process itself was incredibly smooth, thanks to Zoe and her dedicated team. They went above and beyond to ensure the project was completed on time and to the highest standard. Overall, the transformation has been outstanding!”
Arnaud Leudjou BA(Hons)| MBA | CMgr FCMI.
Head of Retail, Brunel University
MPK continues to lower energy use with nationwide roll-out
July 2023
Switched on petrol forecourt operators, MPK Garages Group committed to fitting fridge doors on open chillers across their entire petrol station estate. Impressed by the 40% reduction in energy usage following installing doors on fridges at MPK Junction Station, Long Eaton pilot site in 2022 they have commissioned DoubleCOOL to fit fridge doors to their open chillers, in 28 further petrol station convenience shops.
Over the past six months, Staffordshire-based DoubleCOOL have enclosed 253 meters of open chiller frontage with their durable, double paned, acrylic Swing1 doors, in 25 MPK operated sites across the Midlands, as far north as County Durham, to Bristol in the south of England. In total, 406 doors have now been installed. As a result, MPK Garages Group has been able to reduce operational costs inline with original forecasts, despite the drastic rise in electricity costs. Each site is now consuming less kW, which is off-setting the energy price rise, critically resulting in containing costs and keeping MPK on track to achieve retail targets. MPK are predicting a ROI in just 12 months.
Wayne Harrand, MPK Garage’s Retail Director commented, “Installation has gone smoothly at all sites, with no disruption to trading. We are now seeing consistent temperatures on the chillers, even in this summer’s hot weather. By taking away the strain on the chillers and reducing the need for maintenance, we’ve also experienced better food quality and hence less food wastage. The results we’ve achieved with this cool move to enclose fridges, were a hot topic of conversation at a recent retail industry conference. We would highly recommend any retailer with open chillers to fit fridge doors. The reasons are as crystal clear as DoubleCOOL’s doors! It’s a simple energy saving solution, good for the environment and has no negative impact on consumer spend. We’ve found shoppers are very supportive of the move, as they realise and understand what we are doing to provide a better consumer experience, save energy, and the environment.”
SPAR convenience Store, Stafford
June 2023
At the ACS (Association of Convenience Stores) conference back in April, Spar Convenience Stores Director, Julian Taylor-Green, was so impressed with DoubleCOOL’s presentation he immediately ordered doors for his Spar store in Stafford.
The installation of 34 doors enclosing 21.25m frontage of chiller cabinets housing soft drinks, dairy, meat, wines, and beers took place in June, and already Julian’s Spar shop is enjoying the benefits.
Having previously purchased fridges with doors, staff and customers have found DoubleCOOL doors to be much lighter, easier to use, and make merchandising simpler. Staff have particularly noticed the change in store temperature and looking forward in earnest to a warmer, more pleasant winter.
Getting the doors in place from the original order to fitment took just a matter of weeks. The weekend of installation in early June was a hot one, and the fridges were running at 7-8 degrees. On completion, the lessened duress on the fridges was immediately apparent with post-installation temperatures of 2-3 degrees behind the DoubleCOOL doors.
“Everything Zoe claimed about the doors was true. It’s a cliché, but they did everything they said on the tin, and there was no sales flannel! We conservatively predict that we will save 25% on energy usage, which translates to an approximate monthly saving of £1200, and an investment payback within 18 months. The installation was hassle free, the engineers worked around the store fit out schedule and the doors fit perfect. Our customers have been very complimentary about the smart looking cabinets, and tidy display of the stock. We are confident that we will experience better temperature control within the shop itself. The shop will be much warmer in winter, without the cool air from the fridges escaping, reducing the demands for heating, which will further enhance the energy savings we are currently experiencing. In summary, I’d advise other operators not to hesitate to fit DoubleCOOL doors on open cabinets. The payback is genuine and there are big cost savings to be had.” Julian Taylor-Green, Director, Spar Stafford
MPK Junction Petrol Station, Long Eaton, Derbyshire
December 2022
MPK Garages Group really are switched on when it comes to energy saving. Using bespoke energy data management analysis, they concluded that their open-fronted instore chillers, at their test site – Junction Petrol Station in Derbyshire, were accounting for 42% of the site’s energy overall.
The solution to reducing their energy usage was simple. They chose to retrofit durable, double paned, acrylic Swing1 fridge doors from DoubleCOOL. In double quick time, we installed 14 doors to approx. 8.75m of their open-fronted chillers. The installation took place over the course of a day, section by section, with minimal interruption to trading.
Since the installation, the MPK Group have continued to closely monitor energy usage, collecting and analysing the data. Results of the first month showed that an incredible 40% reduction in energy was achieved. In real terms, this represents a cost saving of £8k, and the installation will pay for itself well within a year, and will continue to keep paying back, year upon year. The success of the test site at Junction Petrol Station, has MPK all set to roll out fridge door installation to the wider group, of 26 further petrol station forecourts.
“Energy is one of the highest operating costs for our business and rising daily. It was (and is) imperative to look for energy reduction solutions to help energy efficiency, lower energy costs and improve environmental performance. In September 2022 we installed 14 DoubleCOOL Swing 1 doors (which is approx. 8.75m) to our refrigeration cabinets. The impact was immediate, we monitored our energy consumption and saw over 50% savings in the first month. We predict an annual energy cost saving of up to £8,000 meaning a payback on the doors in less than 12 months.” Comments Wayne Harrand Retail Director at MPK Garages.
Premier, Yoxall Staffordshire
October 2022
Yoxall Village Store and Post Office is operated under the Premier symbol, serving a rural Staffordshire community, of less than 2k residents, seven days a week from 7am until 9pm.
The general store owners aspire to a modern, open plan, visually pleasing store design, with a layout that’s accessible, appealing and comfortable for shoppers. When it came to enclosing 5 meters of open refrigeration cabinets, this local, independent retailer turned to DoubleCOOL for double quick supply and installation of 8, Swing 1 fridge doors.
Now their dairy produce, juices and pop, fresh meats and chilled produce including ready meals, sit neatly behind double paned acrylic hinged doors. Customers are benefitting from 100% transparency of neatly displayed chilled produce, accessed by lightweight smooth-opening and self-closing hinged doors, that are condensation free and have a finger safety gap. The Swing 1 doors are keeping the cold in, reducing the fridge’s power requirements, and preventing the store feeling cold for customers. Co-owner Mr Culbinder Singh is also set to benefit from a 60% reduction in energy usage, now that’s worth getting in touch with DoubleCOOL for!
NISA LOCAL, Blackpool, Lancashire
September 2022
Energy savings are starting to add up at Nisa Local (part of the Coop group) in Blackpool. Since DoubleCOOL retrofitted 32 Swing 1 acrylic fridge doors to their previously open-fronted fridges.
Like many convenience store operators, Blackpool’s Nisa Local franchisees were looking to make energy cost savings. With an 18.75m run of open chiller cabinets, constantly expelling costly chilled air into the shop, there was an instant energy saving to be had.
Nisa Local chose to display their “grab and go” meal deals, ready meals, dairy, meat, chilled alcoholic and soft drinks, behind closed doors. The installation took just 2 days, with minimal impact on the store operations, and the subsequent energy savings and benefits were instant.
With stainless steel, accessible handles, self-closing hinges with safety finger gaps, and great product visibility, there’s been no negative affect on sales of chilled ranges. With fridge energy cost savings alone in year one predicted at £7.5k, the retrofit fridge door return on investment will payback in well under two years.
Aldi's energy saving action in DoubleCOOL's hometown
September 2022
As part of its energy reduction initiative, supermarket giant Aldi is set to save the equivalent of over 2,000 tonnes of carbon emissions a year, by installing fridge doors as standard in its new and newly refurbished stores.
DoubleCOOL were delighted to supply and fit their innovative fridge door solution to the Aldi store chiller aisle, in Uttoxeter, right on DoubleCOOL HQ’s doorstep. As part of its contract with Aldi, over 80m of DoubleCOOL fridge doors were installed in September 2022. The supermarket chain estimate that each store will reduce its energy consumption by approximately 20%, equivalent to a carbon emissions saving of up to 20 tonnes per store, each year – just by fitting fridge doors. That’s great news for Uttoxeter!
Michael Ham, Managing Director of DoubleCOOL, said: “It is fantastic to work with Aldi and for our staff to now see and feel the benefits of DoubleCOOL doors in action as they shop local, just brings the impact of what we’re doing home.”
“Every fridge door we fit, whether in top supermarkets, or independently operated local shops, is lowering energy consumption, reducing carbon emissions, and saving operators money on energy. It’s a very rewarding enterprise to be part of.”
Aldi, who last month took fourth place in GB’s grocery store market share*, have a very determined approach to reduce store energy consumption, minimise its carbon emissions and climate impact. The supermarket, which has been carbon neutral since January 2019, has already reduced its carbon footprint by more than 55% since 2012 through a number of sustainability initiatives.
Mary Dunn, Managing Director of Corporate Responsibility at Aldi UK, said: “Introducing fridge doors is another step on that journey to reduce our energy consumption and we hope that customers enjoy the new, more sustainable shopping experience.”
It’s a journey we’re happy to be on with Aldi, and other chilled produce retailers, large and small, near and far.
Morrisions Daily, Llansantffraid, Wales
August 2022
This busy store, alongside a petrol station underwent a massive refurbishment as it moved to operate under the Morrisons Daily retail brand. Subsequently, EC Ashton & Son – the franchisee – have enclosed 7.5m of chilled drinks cabinets using DoubleCOOL Swing 1 Doors.
In April 2022, the store tripled its chilled range and underwent a massive refurbishment to improve customer experience, as it became a Morrisons Daily franchise.
The 7.5m stretch of chilled alcoholic drinks shelving was originally left open, however with running cost and customer comfort in mind, DoubleCOOL undertook the conversion to enclose the cabinets. With minimal interruption to trading – the store is open from 7.30am until 10pm daily – the retrofit of 12 Swing 1 fridge doors was completed in August 2022.
Now the white wine, rose and fizz sits alongside lagers and real ale IPAs cooling behind closed doors, with the chiller temperature maintained, energy usage reduced and increased customer comfort. The operators are so pleased with the results, that they’ve already placed an order for retrofitting DoubleCOOL fridge doors in a second store.