Marble Hospitality has introduced plans to open two new Pantry shops by the tip of this yr. One will likely be situated at The View in Fourways, a brand new upmarket life-style vacation spot at the moment below building, whereas the opposite will open at Mall of Africa in Waterfall Metropolis, Midrand. As soon as accomplished, the additions will mark the sixth Pantry retailer format launched in simply 5 years and sign the following section of the model’s structured nationwide enlargement technique.
What started in 2022 as a daring reinvention of the petrol station comfort retailer has developed right into a scalable, vertically built-in retail platform spanning forecourt, standalone, company, and mall pop-up codecs.
By the tip of 2027, Marble Hospitality goals to function 10 Pantry places throughout Johannesburg earlier than increasing into different areas.
“After we launched Pantry in Rosebank, it was a calculated danger,” says Gary Kyriacou, Co-Founding father of Marble Hospitality Group alongside David Higgs. “We needed to take probably the most strange retail format in South Africa – the forecourt comfort retailer – and rebuild it as one thing individuals would actively select to go to. The objective was to show that comfort might be elevated, design-led and food-first. As soon as we noticed the demand, the following step was constructing a system that might scale.”
From Idea to Class Chief
Reasonably than copying current forecourt fashions, the crew mapped Pantry round actual client missions: morning espresso, last-minute dinner options, gifting, indulgence and each day necessities. The outcome was a retailer that might meet a number of wants in a single go to – encouraging frequency, longer dwell time and broader basket spend.
“Pantry was constructed round real-life rhythms,” says Gary Kyriacou, Co-Founding father of Marble Hospitality Group. “When you can remedy multiple want in a single, well-designed area, you cease being a comfort cease and begin changing into a part of individuals’s each day lives.”
Design performed a central industrial function in reaching this shift. Format, lighting and materiality have been deliberately used to sluggish prospects down, encourage exploration and drive basket enlargement. “Design isn’t aesthetic – it’s strategic,” Kyriacou provides. “If prospects really feel good within the area, they keep longer. And once they keep longer, retail efficiency follows.”
The industrial outcomes validated the mannequin early. Inside the first month of buying and selling, the Rosebank Pantry exceeded monetary targets by 25%. Kyriacou provides that early gross sales have been pushed by high-frequency necessities akin to bread, espresso and takeaway meals, whereas broader retail classes scaled as prospects grew to become extra acquainted with the supply. Importantly, this development was achieved with out discounting and was as an alternative pushed by expertise, product high quality and repeat visits.
Trade recognition adopted quickly after, with Pantry named Finest Forecourt Retailer within the Better of Joburg Readers’ Alternative Awards, reinforcing that the idea had moved past novelty to set a brand new benchmark throughout the class.
Increasing the Pantry Format
Following early industrial validation, 2025 marked a shift from idea validation to strategic rollout.
In October, the primary standalone Pantry opened in Hazelwood, Pretoria, introducing expanded seating, bigger contemporary counters and an prolonged retail vary. The identical month noticed the launch of a mall-based pop-up at Mall of Africa – a condensed format designed to introduce the model to high-footfall retail audiences.
In January 2026, one other standalone Pantry opened at Omni Sq. in Bassonia, demonstrating that the mannequin is adaptable throughout totally different city densities and buyer profiles.
“Every format serves a distinct goal,” says Gary. “Forecourts win on comfort. Standalone shops enhance dwell time and basket measurement – whereas embedding us into prospects each day lives. Pop-ups and company codecs construct model consciousness and permit us to check new markets.”
The upcoming Fourways and Midrand shops symbolize a broader Johannesburg-focused enlargement technique.
“Over the following yr, we’re prioritising Johannesburg nodes such because the East Rand, Bryanston and Morningside,” Kyriacou says. “From there, the plan is to develop into the Western Cape after which nationally.”
“The imaginative and prescient was by no means to construct a single standout retailer,” Kyriacou concludes, however relatively to create a scalable platform able to adapting to totally different precincts with out compromising consistency, high quality or buyer expertise. Because the Pantry footprint expands, the main focus stays on refining a mannequin that integrates hospitality, operational management and retail innovation in a means that helps long-term, sustainable development throughout numerous city markets.
