High street coffee chain Pret A Manger’s financial results for the 52 weeks to 31 December 2015 showed group sales were up 13.9% year on year (YOY) to £676.2m (+7.5% like-for-like). Ebitda was up 14.5% to £84.3m. 

Increased demand for breakfast on-the-go was a large factor in the results, with 58% of sales made outside lunchtime. Fourteen per cent of sales were from new food and drink items developed in the last year, but these were “mostly non-bread”.

Sales of vegetarian products were in double-digit growth and, in response, Pret has announced it will be opening a vegetarian-only pop-up in London this June. Avocado was the fastest-growing ingredient: customers ate five million during the period in question.

Clive Schlee, chief executive of Pret A Manger, said: “Pret continues to grow steadily in the UK, adapting its menu to meet demand for healthy options.”

Its US shops also performed well last year, becoming the chain’s fastest-growing market in 2015.

Schlee added: “We will, of course, still focus on the essentials: engagement of our wonderful team members, the freshness and quality of our ingredients, and securing top-class locations around the world. This gives us confidence for the year ahead.”

Earlier this month, Pret announced it was covering the cost of the new national living wage (NLW) by charging customers more for their coffee.