Pret A Manger will open its debut store in Northern Ireland later this year as part of its expansion across the island, creating up to 20 new jobs.

The new shop in Belfast city centre marks the food chain’s fourth outlet and will be operated by its franchise partner, Carebrook Partnership.

Pret’s latest opening is part of the business’ plans to open 20 stores across the island within the next decade.

It currently has three branches in Dublin in the Republic of Ireland – all of which have opened in the last 18 months.

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The chain is looking for local charities to partner with, where it can donate surplus food at the end of each day.

UK and Ireland managing director Clare Clough said: “We’re delighted to be opening Pret’s first-ever shop in Northern Ireland as part of our ambitious plans to bring Pret to more people.

“We’ve long heard that Belfast locals and visitors would love to have a Pret, so we can’t wait to welcome them to our new shop right in the heart of the city with our longstanding franchise partner Carebrook, who has had much success operating Pret shops in the UK and on the island of Ireland.”

Pret A Manger, which has over 700 shops worldwide, attributed its international growth to the 20% bump in half-year sales.

The business revealed last month that sales topped £429.9m in the six months to the end of June.

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