Pret takes its first foray into petrol stations with MFG

Pret A Manger has revealed it is to open new shops in petrol stations owned by Motor Fuel Group (MFG), the UK’s largest forecourt operator.

The partnership with MFG will initially see the food-to-go operator trial one shop in a BP branded petrol station in Southgate, London with a view to opening a second site by the end of 2022.

The Southgate site will serve a menu of freshly prepared food and organic coffee and teas, all made in bespoke full onsite kitchens throughout the day.

It forms part of Pret’s transformation plan as it look to bring ‘Pret to more people’ and comes just after it announced it would be trialling shops in Tesco stores and just a couple of months following the debut of its bake-at-home croissant range with the retailer. It also announced a partnership with motorway service operator Moto in October.

“Since the start of the pandemic, we have looked for innovative ways to bring Pret to more people, and partnerships, such as this one, are an important part of this strategy,” said Clare Clough, UK managing director of Pret A Manger. “We hope that customers will enjoy this new concept and we look forward to working more closely with the MFG team in the coming months.”

MFG CEO William Bannister said the business was proud to become the first forecourt operator to open a Pret site.

“The fact that such a well-known and trusted high street brand as Pret has decided to trial their very first forecourt partnership with MFG cements our commitment to being a one-stop offering for both our local communities and those travelling through,” he added.

Pret was badly hit by the pandemic, cutting more than 3,500 jobs and permanently closing 39 shops across the UK. In its recent annual accounts the business warned of ‘material uncertainties’ that could ‘cast significant doubt’ over its ability to continue as a going concern.