Prêt plans sandwich assault on New York

British sandwich chain Prêt à Manger plans to be running 30 outlets across New York by 2003 and to move into the Asian market next year. The company, which has 112 shops in the UK, opened its first overseas outlet last July in Broad Street, in New York's financial district. It is now serving 1,500 customers a day. Seven more outlets will open this year in mid-town New York. The first three will appear this summer. The funds for the reported $38m (£27m) investment will come from the company's sale early this year of a 33% stake in its business to hamburger giant McDonald's for an estimated £30m. The New York expansion will be headed by Jay Willoughby, who was hired in February as president and chief operating officer for Prêt à Manger USA. He has run café chain Caribou Coffee and the 1,000-strong Boston Chicken chain, as well as working for Pizza Hut. Prêt à Manger has also been looking at Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore and plans to move into one of these markets next year.