Carluccio's to trial three new concepts with Sainsbury's

Boparan Restaurant Group is teaming up with Sainsbury's to test out three new in-store concepts under the Carluccio's brand for the first time.

The first format will be a coffee shop in Sainsbury's St Albans superstore, offering customers eat-in as well as takeaway options. Caffè Carluccio's will open on 3 June and will be the debut Carluccio's to open in a supermarket.

The coffee shop will seat 45 customers and serve coffees, cremosa blended drinks and granita fruit ices alongside all-day breakfast and ciabatta sandwiches, toasties, filled croissants and pastries. A range of Carluccio's retail products will also be available.

A Carluccio's Counter will launch in June in the Sainsbury's Leamington Spa superstore, offering deli products such as pasta and olive oils, while made-to-order pizza and rotisserie chicken will be available to takeaway and for delivery via Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat.

The third concept being trialled is the Restaurant Hub, a multi-brand offer with grab-and-go and delivery options from Boparan brands including Caffe Carluccio's, GBK, Slim Chickens, Harry Ramsden's and Ed's Easy Diner. The Restaurant Hub will open in July in Sainsbury's Selly Oak superstore.

Rhian Bartlett, food commercial director at Sainsbury's, said: "This is the first time we've worked with Carluccio's and we'll be listening closely to see what shoppers think of the different concepts."

Carluccio's is also launching its first app, allowing ordering, delivery, menu access and location finding as well providing users with a loyalty mechanic.

Boparan acquired 30 Carluccio's restaurants out of administration in May 2020 after the pandemic hit trading. Around 40 sites closed permanently with the loss of 1,019 jobs.

Sainsbury's and Boparan said they will listen to customer feedback in all three stores before deciding on any next steps.