H1 2023 saw the sandwich giant report a record sales week in May and June, driven by the success of its expanded subscription offer, Club Pret, which was launched in April this year.
The results come as Pret files its 2022 accounts to Companies House. The group returned to profitability in 2022, reporting an annual operating profit of £50.6 million, its first shift to profitability since 2018.
Despite a challenging economic backdrop, Pret believes it remains well-positioned to continue to grow through the opening of company-operated and franchised shops, ‘working with like-minded, capable partners’, while increasing sales at existing shops, supported by new revenue channels.
Pret is tracking ahead of its mid-term growth target announced in September 2021 to double the size of its business within five years.
Since 2021, Pret has opened in seven new markets, beating its target of five new entries by the end of 2023.
International sales now account for 18.9% of revenue and Pret expects to have over 700 shops worldwide by the end of the year.
“It’s been three years of transformation at Pret, in which we’ve evolved into a truly global, multi-channel brand, and emerged as a stronger business than we were in 2019,” says Pret A Manger CEO Pano Christou.
“We’re focused on continuing to grow, while constantly innovating to bring Pret’s freshly made food and organic coffee to brand new places, from Bishop’s Stortford to Bradford and from Italy to India.
“We’re now bringing Pret to even more people thanks to our excellent franchise partners in the UK and around the world. This type of sustainable growth has also given us the confidence to keep investing where it really matters - in our people, with well-deserved pay rises, in our most loyal customers, by expanding our Club Pret subscription, and in helping our local communities via the Pret Foundation.”
