Pret A Manger saw sales down 26% in its City sites in the week to 23 June as footfall in London’s financial and shopping districts fell sharply due to the train strikes, according to Bloomberg’s latest Pret Index.
Sales of coffee, soup and sandwiches at Pret’s sites in the City and Canary Wharf were at 62% of pre-Covid levels – the lowest level since April 2022.
Almost half of City of London workers weren’t at their desks on June 21 when train and tube drivers went on strike, according to data compiled by Google, which tracks the movements of some of its users.
Meanwhile Pret sites in London’s West End and train stations nationwide was also impacted heavily, with sales down 18% and 25%, respectively, to 83% and 78% of pre-pandemic levels.
The only locations to see an increase in sales were London airports – up 7% to 138% of pre-Covid levels. While the suburbs saw a small decline of 3% to 120% of pre-Covid levels.
Pret has been expanding its partnership with overseas franchisees, with several new agreements announced over the past month which will see Pret’s open in the UAE, Spain and Portugal, and Canada.
