// Pret A Manger has bought out rival food retailer Eat
// Pret wants to convert as many of Eat’s stores as possible into Veggie Prets
Pret A Manger has acquired smaller rival food retailer Eat for an undisclosed sum, as the firm seeks to accelerate growth of its vegetarian fascia.
Pret confirmed it would buy out Eat, which operates from 94 stores, and convert as many of them as possible into Veggie Prets.
“The purpose of this deal is to serve a growing demand of vegetarian and vegan customers who want delicious, high-quality food and drink options,” Pret chief executive Clive Schlee said.
“We have been developing the Veggie Pret concept for over two years and we now have four hugely successful shops across London and Manchester.
“The acquisition of the Eat estate is a wonderful opportunity to turbo-charge the development of Veggie Pret and put significant resources behind it.”
The deal comes after Eat last year appointed advisers at KPMG to investigate the possibility of a CVA in order to close underperforming stores.
Management later decided against the insolvency procedure and instead closed a handful of stores.
Accounts filed to Companies House show that Eat made a loss before tax of £17.26 million on revenue of just under £95 million during its financial year ending June 28 last year.
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