Pret A Manger is ramping up its expansion plan as it looks to have over 500 shops outside of London.
Speaking at food-to-go show Lunch!, Pret A Manger UK shops and franchise director Guy Meakin said:
“We’ve now got over 130 shops outside London, which is great, but we want many more, and I see us having well over 500 outside of London.”
The sandwich chain had recently launched its first store in the Lake District on a Motor Fuel Group (MFG) forecourt. Meakins said it looks to expand to other parts of the UK which have similar opportunities, such as Cornwall, Scotland, North Wales and Cheshire.
However, in order to appeal to the wider consumer, Meakin said Pret needs to “make sure we continue to refine”.
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“One of the things that we’ve been guilty about is that we want a similar look and feel to what we’re doing in the city. But what those shops [outside of London] might need is more comfy seating than our city centre shops, for example. So I think we need to continue to refine that, and that’s a big priority of the team,” he explained.
To maintain its position as a premium product provider, the firm focuses on its Pret A Manger’s in-store kitchens at its city centre stores, as well as new or upcoming motorway services and shopping centres across the country.
“Having those freshly made products on our shelves and being able to react to the change of conditions outside is absolutely critical to our business model,” Meakin said.
“We make our products three to six times a day depending on how successful the day has been. If you ever go into a Pret shop, normally you can hear the noise coming from the kitchen door and good music where there are people passionately trying to make sandwiches for people.”
