EXCLUSIVE Map shows where Greggs is opening new stores as sausage roll giant announces plan to open 150 including 24-hour drive-thru this year – so is one coming near you?
- The bakery firm will be opening new shops in airports and near an historic castle
- Newcastle, London, Gatwick, Edinburgh and Glasgow are getting new outlets
Sausage roll giant Greggs will be opening new branches next to an historic castle and in airports across the UK, MailOnline can reveal.
The bakery firm has announced ambitious plans to build 150 new UK stores UK this year, as part of a major expansion effort – which includes trialing the first set of 24-hour drive-thrus.
Now, the company has revealed exactly where its seven newest spots will be based, with London, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Newcastle all set for new branches.
A Greggs store will open just a stone’s throw away from Edinburgh’s historic 12th century castle.
And holidaymakers jetting off from Gatwick Airport’s South Terminal and Glasgow Airport will soon be able to pick up their favourite treats before they fly abroad, with new shops earmarked for each.
Greggs revealed the latest towns and cities where it will be opening its new stores as part of a plan to launch 150 outlets nationwide during 2023
Expansion plans: Greggs wants to grow its stores estate to 3,000 shops, bosses of the bakery giant have said
Other new locations will include a branch at London’s Canary Wharf and Shepherd’s Bush stations, while Newcastle’s Primark Tasty Café and Spennymoor, County Durham, will also be getting their own outlets.
The news comes after Greggs unveiled three new stores this year, which included two drive-thru outlets in Sittingbourne, Kent, and Ulverston, Cumbria, and another bakery at the Bristol Gallagher retail park.
READ MORE: Hot cross customers! Greggs sparks outrage after axing the popular Easter bun from its menu
The expansion effort follows a boom in sales and profits – despite rising costs to produce goods.
Greggs already opened a record 186 new shops this year, and closed 39, with new chains popping up in transport hubs like train stations and airports, retail parks and drive-thrus.
By the end of 2022, it had 2,328 branches dotted across the UK – but bosses at the bakery giant claim they want to eventually have more than 3,000 nationwide.
Roisin Currie, Greggs’ chief executive, said the company’s growth strategy involves adding 150 new shops every year.
‘We believe we have got enough momentum to continue with that target for the foreseeable future,’ she said.
As well as seeking to expand its current stock by 150 this year, Greggs said it also wants to relocate 40 shops to larger sites and refurbish a further 150 stores.
It also extended opening hours for around 500 shops to 8pm or beyond in 2022,
It has meant customers are heading to stores for evening meals like low-cost pizzas and chicken goujons.
Among the locations to get a new Greggs this year will be Gatwick Airport’s South Terminal (pictured)
And Edinburgh Castle (pictured) will be getting a Greggs in a road a stone’s throwaway, in Edinburgh Castle Street
It comes as Greggs revealed its total sales hit a record high of £1.5 billion last year, up by nearly a quarter on the previous year.
Households grappling with rising living costs has resulted in loyal customers who return to Greggs for value meals, although the number of customers has remained below pre-pandemic levels, it said.
Ms Currie told PA: ‘Customers are seeking out great quality and great value, and that’s exactly what we offer.
‘If you are a person who is out and about – whether you are going to work, or going to college or going to meet friends and you need to eat, then you are coming into Greggs and having a breakfast for £2.60, a lunch for £3.60, or an evening meal offer.
‘It is just that easy way to fuel yourself when you’re on the go and you need to eat.’
On Sunday the company came under fire from customers after it announced it was axing hot cross buns from its Easter menu.
This is the second year that Greggs has decided to axe hot cross buns from its Easter menu. However, it promises that there will still be seasonal treats available
A Greggs spokesperson said: ‘While Hot Cross Buns won’t be returning to our menu this Easter, keep an eye out for other Easter favourites that will be arriving in our shops soon.’
But livid customers took to social media to vent their anger at the decision. One said: ‘No Hot Cross Buns? No Greggs. Simples.’
About five per cent of its total sales came from delivery services, with strong demand for sharing boxes, Greggs said.
The group’s profit lifted by just 1.9 per cent over the year, after it was hit by steep cost inflation and the withdrawal of the Government’s pandemic support.
Its pre-tax profit hit £148.3 million in 2022, up from £145.6 million the previous year.
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