Ma Potters on lookout for new purchase

Ma Potters intends to accelerate its growth in the increasingly competitive chain restaurant sector with the purchase of another chain.

John Gater, managing director of Ma Potters, confirmed he had completed talks with backers and was now looking for new opportunities.

"We will most likely look to buy and convert," Gater said. "We want to speed up our growth, as we don't want to be overtaken by our rivals, and we now have the internal infrastructure in place to support rapid expansion."

The group announced last week that it intends to open 10 new sites over the next 18 months, split between its Ma Potter's Chargrills and MA Potters Bar Restaurant formats. Next up will be Ma Potter's at the Xscape Braehead leisure complex near Glasgow at the end of the month.

New restaurants in the Manchester and Leeds areas, Bristol and the City of London will follow.

Ma Potters currently has 16 restaurants in shopping centre and high-street locations.