Pret a Manger has announced the launch of new dine-in restaurants complete with a refreshed menu and porcelain crockery in a bid to draw in hybrid workers.
The British sandwich giant will test the shop format in towns that offer fewer ‘grab-and-go’ options as it aims to keep customers in store for longer.
Croque monsieur and a caprese melt are among the made to order food items on offer and the company’s managing director believes there could be more than 100 dine-in stores opening in the future.
Unlike present outlets, there will only be one ‘ready-to-go’ refrigerated shelf as employees prepare fresh baguettes over the course of the day.
Two shops are set to be trialled in the immediate future – at Broughty Ferry near Dundee and Maidenhead in Berkshire.
The stores will be complete with their own play area for children.
It comes as Clare Clough, Pret’s Managing Director for UK & Europe, said working patterns had changed since the pandemic ‘and that probably is here to stay’.
She added: ‘They hybrid working model gives us more confidence in more towns.’
Images show a more spacious looking Pret with tables and chairs which could be used for meetings
There will be less of an element on the ‘grab and go’ aspect and the Pret is complete with a new menu
Croque monsieur and a caprese melt are among the made to order food items on offer
Both trial shops incorporate a large ‘community table’ which Pret says could be used by local groups such as mothers or knitting clubs.
Ms Clough said: ‘The white space opportunity for the brand is big and therefore we know we have to adapt the model ever so slightly.’
She explained the typically grab-and-go element to Pret was less important to customers in smaller towns than busy city destinations.
More than 80 per cent of the chain’s store openings since January 2023 have been outside London.
Ms Clough has said the new shop format ‘will beocme a significant portion of the estate in the future’ – estimating there could be more than 100.
She added the list of target areas was ‘long’ and ‘there are many regional towns around the UK where we’re not, but we’d love to be in’.
The Little Pret Star Cafe is also a feature of the new stores with the miniature set up specially catering to children
A photo of the shop in Broughty Ferry shows a more relaxed and spacious environment for customers
A view of the town high street is visible as the sunlight beams through onto four chairs laid out in the store
A new look at the shop set-up in Broughty Ferry shows an emphasis on the dine-in aspect of eating
A staff member smiles in front of a brand new revised menu that provides customers with more options
Pret currently operates 500 shops in the UK and Ireland in addition to 66 in the US, 100 in Europe and another 66 across Asia, the Middle East and Africa
There is a wider range of food on offer as well as some of the more traditional store bakes
Pret currently operates 500 shops in the UK and Ireland in addition to 66 in the US, 100 in Europe and another 66 across Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
The first ever Pret was opened on Victoria Street in London in 1986.
It comes as the firm was bought by Germany’s JAB Holding Company in 2018 for £1.5billion from Bridgepoint.
