UK baker and fast food chain Greggs has today reported improving sales growth as its first half progressed, helped by better trading conditions, and said it was sticking to forecasts for the full year.
Greggs, famous for its sausage rolls, steak bakes, vegan alternatives and sweet treats, said today like-for-like sales rose 2.9% in the first 20 weeks of the year having disappointed with a rise of 1.7% in the first nine weeks which it blamed on a tough macroeconomic backdrop.
Its shares have fallen 28% so far this year, reflecting weakness among its core lower-income customer base.
Greggs, which has more stores than McDonald’s in the UK, opened 20 net new stores, ending the period with 2,638. Ultimately its sees scope for over 4,500.
The new stores helped drive a 7.4% rise in total sales to £784m.
Growth is also being supported by an expansion of Greggs’ menu, such as the introduction of Mac and Cheese, chicken burgers and fish finger sandwiches, longer opening hours into the evening, increased delivery sales through Just Eat and Uber Eats and building loyalty with the Greggs App.
Last week, Greggs raised prices on some products by up to 10 pence after a round of increases in January.
In March, Greggs had forecast another “year of progress” after reporting an underlying pretax profit of £190m for 2024.
