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Pret A Manger is set to take on UK supermarkets with plans to trial meal deals in a bid to help boost the chain’s lunchtime trade.
The sandwich and coffee chain has said it will test the meal deal format in the final three months of this year amid efforts to “double down” on delivering strong value for customers.
Boss Pano Christou said Pret’s priority will be “offering great value for money” as part of its medium-term strategy to grow the brand and return to sustainable profits.
It will start trials from next week, which will include deals for customers to buy a croissant and a drink, as well as a deal for a sandwich, drink and crisps.
Pret said it will test the deals at different prices to see how consumers react.
Major supermarkets, such as Tesco, have offered meal deals including sandwiches, snacks and drinks, for many years.
Tesco recently increased the price of its meal deal by 25p as food inflation continues to impact on the sector.
It came as Pret revealed that it fell to a heavy loss last year because of non-cash impairments linked to a reassessment of the company by owner JAB, which bought the chain in 2018.
Pret’s latest set of annual accounts showed it reported a pre-tax loss of £525.2 million in the year to January 2, after being hammered by £552.9 million write-down during the year. It compared with a £61.7 million loss a year earlier.
It is understood this related to how JAB assessed the value of the brand, its properties and other assets linked to Pret.
The company said earnings before adjustments were up 36 per cent to £98 million for the year.
Meanwhile, Pret saw total revenues slide by 4.2 per cent to £868.4 million for the year, compared with a year earlier.
It said like-for-like sales grew by 2.8 per cent as the business continued its international expansion, growing its store estate by 11 to 717 shops.
Pret said it is targeting further expansion in the UK and the US, particularly around travel hubs and city centres, amid recent growth in New York.
Mr Christou, chief executive of Pret A Manger, said he believes the business can expand from 500 UK sites to between 1,000 and 1,500, with plans to grow its presence in roadside locations.
The boss said: “2024 was another year of growth for Pret, where we took disciplined decisions to protect sales, despite intense strains on the hospitality industry.
“Going forward our priority will be to drive transactions and sustainable growth by offering great value for money for Pret customers.
“Our focus will be on growing Pret’s market share in the UK and internationally, prioritising city centres and travel hubs, backed by the experience and expertise of additional world-class board members and a strengthened management team.”
