Johannesburg in South Africa has gone through a major transformation since the fall of apartheid in 1994. Urban and bustling, it is the largest African metropolis and the financial epicentre of Southern Africa.
Always on the lookout for new retail concepts, I love to seize any opportunity I get to learn from an expert, so who better to talk to than David Smollan, CEO of Smollan, a sales, marketing and retail execution services company focused on growing clients’ brands. On my last visit to South Africa, David led me straight to Johannesburg to look at Pantry by Marble which really does elevate the universal service station experience to something beyond a quick takeaway or coffee. In the same way that flagship retail stores on the high street are trying to make their spaces more experiential, Pantry becomes a destination rather than merely somewhere to mindlessly pass through. The service station opened in partnership with Sasol, in October 2021, during a time when the world was cautiously emerging out of the Covid pandemic and the desire for unique, fresh and immersive experiences was strong. Pantry was built to provide this and was carefully designed to epitomise the concept of high quality and luxury food in a low (not no)-frills environment. In short, it brought to life its own motto: “fancy, but easy”.
Using the know-how of The Marble Group chef, David Higgs, alongside the expertise of Tyler Clayton, former Head Chef of another of The Marble Group’s endeavours, the restaurant, Saint, the deli and ready-made food offerings are compiled of hot products like prego rolls and rotisserie chickens, and ready to eat items like cakes, bowls, salads, pasta, wraps and freshly made pizza. There’s a retail section that is stocked with over 6,000 items including washing powder, artisanal spices and hot chocolate, and the homeware section, which was curated by The Marble Group’s interior designer, Irene Kyriacou – who designed the entire space – is somewhere to pick up Okra candles and 100% cotton table linen. Wikus Human, head sommelier for Marble Hospitality has also pulled together a selection of 45 local wines and international champagnes, with vintage, background, tasting notes and recommended pairing displayed next to each bottle to complete the store. In essence, it’s the kind of place where you can pick up a pestle and mortar with one hand and a freshly baked loaf with the other.
As David took me around Pantry, I was reminded of some equivalent luxe service stations that can be found in the UK. Drive along the M5 and between Junction 11A and Junction 12, you’ll come across Gloucester Services. Famous for its farm shop, it opened in 2014 and works with more than 130 producers within 30 miles of the service station to provide high quality food and produce for customers. The buildings are award-winning, nature-friendly, and were inspired by the Gloucestershire landscape, with up to 3p for every £1 spent in the farm shop and kitchen invested back into the community through the Gloucestershire Gateway Trust. Like Pantry, it’s more than a services; it’s a destination where travellers can comfortably spend time rather than simply pass through. Tebay Services, on the M6 in Cumbria is a similar concept, placing emphasis on excellent food, and, like Gloucester Services, it has a farm shop, as well as a butcher, bakery and café.
“The emphasis moves towards how to fill time rather than how to save it.”
And it appears as though people are spending time in these service stations. This year, Gloucester Services turned over £75 million with EBITDA reaching £10 million, a 5.3% increase from 2023, while Tebay Services also saw turnover increase by 7.1% to £60 million with EBITDA rising by 6.7%. In comparison, Leigh Delamere Services on the M4 – which is operated by Moto Hospitality – saw similar, if very slightly lower, percentage changes, despite being a more traditional and significantly bigger motorway services with both EBITDA and turnover between 2023 and 2024 rising by 5%.
It is perhaps not a surprise that service stations like these are springing up around the globe, as the shift towards going electric increases. Worldwide, there are approximately 40 million fully electric and hybrid vehicles on the road with 12 million new electric cars sold in 2023 – plus, between 2020 and 2024, there has been a 400% increase in the number of electric cars in the world. The impact on service stations may not seem immediately obvious, but the way electric vehicle users and fuel users interact with service stations is quite different.
Currently, the average amount of time a person spends in a service station is five to ten minutes if they’re simply refuelling and making a convenience store purchase, or 20 to 30 minutes if they are stopping on the motorway. However, even with a rapid charger, it takes around 35 minutes to add 100 miles to an electric vehicle and a charge from 20% to 100% would take around 50 minutes. Using a slower charger could mean anywhere between a three hour to eight hour wait to hit max capacity, so there’s potentially a lot more hanging around than the five minutes it takes to fill up a car with petrol. More hanging around time, means demand for more experiential and interesting service stations is likely to increase. Sitting down and having a stone-baked pizza or gift shopping at Pantry is a much more desirable way to spend an hour or two than grabbing a quick meal deal. The emphasis moves towards how to fill time rather than how to save it.
As I wandered around Pantry, taking in the fresh produce and artisan gifts, I found myself reflecting on the global market for luxe service stations. There is clearly demand, as there are no signs Pantry will be slowing down any time soon in South Africa, and UK equivalents, like Gloucester and Tebay are reporting strong figures. So, will we see more service stations that follow in the same vein opening? And how fast will change be as the world edges towards becoming more electrically driven? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
