CONVENIENCE store retailer Jonathan James is going head to head with supermarket giant Tesco as both companies vie to be declared Green Retailer of the Year.

Managing director Mr James opened a new �1.5m BP petrol station and Spar shop with eco credentials in Littleport last year - and it has already been acknowledged as a world leader in retailing design.

At the Littleport site run by James Graven and Sons, rain water is harvested for use on the car wash; it uses energy efficient lighting, and all the chiller cabinets in the shop have sliding doors, cutting electricity usage by 66 per cent.

Mr James had researched modern and environmentally friendly petrol stations abroad, so he could create the most innovative design for the Wisbech Road site.

Board members from top South African retailers Pick and Pay have visited the Littleport store; magazines from China and California have featured it; and the Spar company has been filming there, ready to roll it out as a model for its stores around the world.

The store was the sixth to be opened by the company, it already had three Budgen outlets and two Spar stores in the eastern region, including Budgens in Ely and Soham.

“It is amazing that our company is up against one of the largest UK retailers,” said Mr James. “The new store has put Littleport on the world map,”

James Graven and Sons is a finalist in two categories of The Grocer Gold Awards 2011; the company is up against Tesco, the Midlands Co-op and the The Co-operative Society in the Green Retailer of the Year section.

The company is also one of four finalists in The Grocer’s Independent Retailer of the Year category.

James Graven, which has four BP forecourts, has also been declared Brand Champion for BP. Mr James said: “We are expected to fly the flag and uphold the image of BP; keeping forecourts clean and tidy, and we won because of the environmental work we do.”.

The awards ceremony will take place at The Guildhall in London on June 15.