Greggs to trial 24-hour drive-thru stores

Greggs is to trial the launch of 24-hour drive-thru stores this year and open more of its shops past 9pm off the back of strong sales.

The bakery chain has already extended the opening hours of 500 sites up to and after 8pm and said the evening was now its strongest growing daypart.

Greggs' chief executive Roisin Currie said the company could offer "exceptional value" when customer incomes were being squeezed.

Total sales at Greggs jumped 23% last year to £1.5b, while pre-tax profits rose 1.9% to £148.3m.

The chain has introduced warm versions of some of its key items to cater to the evening trade and said late-night sales of pizzas, chicken goujons and salad boxes were growing well.

Around 80% of its late-opening stores offer home delivery, which the group said made evening trading more viable.

During 2023, Greggs plans to extend opening hours in 300 shops to 9pm and will trial 24-hour drive-thru shops.

The chain, which was founded in Newcastle in 1939, has just over 2,300 UK stores and plans to grow to 3,000 sites across the country.

It opened 186 new shops in 2022 and closed 39, with the brand targeting 150 net openings in 2023.

"We have an exciting, ambitious plan for the years ahead and, by continuing to nurture what makes Greggs special, I believe we are extremely well-placed to realise the opportunity to become a significantly larger, multi-channel business," said Currie.