Podcast: Will Service Stations Disrupt the Food Game?
Published on: Dec 12, 2025
In this episode, Brian Donaldson and Daniel Baven explore how service stations and convenience stores are entering a new era: transforming into food providers and tapping into a massive profit pool. They discuss the role of technology in digitizing locations, the rise of modular kitchens, and the concept of “Spotify for food” that enables multi-brand flexibility. From tackling the evening economy to leveraging existing infrastructure for scalable growth, this conversation reveals how innovation is redefining convenience retail for the next decade.
Brian Donaldson
Donaldson is Chief Executive Officer of The Maxol Group, Ireland’s largest family-owned convenience forecourt retailer with a network of 242 stations. Having joined Maxol in 1986, Donaldson has led its transformation into an innovative, convenience-led brand, introducing proprietary concepts such as ROSA coffee and Maxol Deli, while driving strategic partnerships and sustainability initiatives. Under his leadership, Maxol has earned multiple NACS European awards for retail excellence, and Donaldson continues to champion future mobility as chair of CBI NI’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Working Group.
“We just don't view our competitors as being other roadside retailers – it’s QSRs, coffee shops and delis. I think there's a massive opportunity for growth.”
“Anyone who's in roadside retail will know that one of the biggest challenges in terms of your food service is how you extend that into the evening economy. Noahs technology platform is very ingenious. It's very simple and scalable.”
Daniel Baven
Baven is co-founder and CEO of Noahs, a Copenhagen-based food-tech company transforming service stations, supermarkets, and mobility hubs into high-performing digital food marketplaces. A Danish-trained chef turned entrepreneur, Baven launched Noahs in 2020 to disrupt the food-tech industry with modular smart kitchens and an innovative platform he calls “the Spotify of food.” Under his leadership, Noahs has partnered with major retailers like Q8, Maxol and MENY, pioneering an asset-light model that blends convenience with culinary quality, and redefining how consumers experience food on the go.
“There are several million locations that over the next 10 years will start selling fresh-made food. You will see these shelves with pre-made food, which has a high waste and a low margin slotted out piece by piece.”
“When you combine the three verticals (technology, food platform, and architecture), you get what we call it the ‘Spotify’ food. We think that service stations will be the biggest disruptor in food in the coming 10 years.”
Podcast by Oscar Smith Diamante
By Oscar Smith Diamante
