Pret a Manger: A Brief History

Introduction

The first Pret a Manger was founded by Jeffrey Hyman and his college friend Sinclair Beecham in London,1986. The name of ‘’Pret a Manger’’ comes from French which means ‘’Ready to Eat’’.

It is known for its fast casual meals by designing dishes according to local conditions, following the trend of replacement menus, and variety is the most crucial reason for Pret A Manger getting to where it is now.

There are several aspects related to a company. Either internal or external factors have possibilities affect the decisions and future plans of a company.

This essay is going to describe in the competitive market, how Pret plans and develops for the future.

Who makes plans for Pret’s future developments:

Pret creates a working environment with its slogan “Wake up and smell the coffee’’ which makes employees have a strong belief and share in its values.

By operating an “open door” policy and with the receptive CEO, all employees are encouraged to share their ideas and have the same understanding of the information.

This breaks the hierarchy and improves employees’ morale which is the core strategy of Pret that not only retains staff but also helps it to make relevant decisions. The culture of Pret lets employees work with more passion and feel they are a part of the company.

Development now and in the Future

Building a business strategy is an important thing for a company, which gives them a general direction to set up a new project. Pret a Manger creates four main steps:

Listening

Due to competitors and substitutes everywhere, brand switching easily brings difficulties in keeping customers’ loyalty.

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Pret listens to the data on social media because it is a symbol of market value which is the most important part of a customer-centric market. Staying agile is key, Pret listens to the market and adapts to its customers’ needs as much as possible.

Innovation

However, good listening is not enough, in order to be at the top, a company must be innovative.

Creating fresh and exciting recipes

– It brings customers more desire to visit.

Re-examining the business formula

It creates new customer products and experiences which are familiar but different.

Blurring the company-customer lines – Let customers decide what they want and try to reach their demands, resulting in satisfaction and a win-win for both sides.

Patience

Giving time for change. For example: Veggie Pret provides the option of tasty plants and allows vegetarianism to become “on trend’’ gradually.

Branding and Social

Pret presents a clear image of reliability on social media and CEO, Clive Schlee, updates Pret’s blog frequently.

Strategies

Marketing

For Pret, advertising spend is made on improving the menu and the in-store experience rather than paying for traditional advertisements. It seems risky, however, Mark Palmer (Pret’s chef marketing officer) believes that word-of-mouth is more reliable and provides free promotion. The company listens to opinions from the public and develop its new food by combining with the current trends and health fad.

Global Expansion

Pret has opened around 450 shops worldwide and is still planning to open more and adapt to the local tastes and preferences.

Example of Brand Expansion – Veggie Pret

The rise of vegetarianism and veganism recently has been evident. Clive (CEO of Pret) started talking about this on the blog and the overwhelming feedback from the public made Pret decide to open a Veggie Pret. The tables below illustrate the vegetarian and vegan trends the company has been following.

As an experiment, the “Pret’s Little Veggie Pop-up” was opened in Soho, London. The company had two goals –

1. Give chefs a ‘’turbo-challenge’’ to invent new veggie and vegan options.
2. Ask customers what they would like to see on Pret’s shelves.

Although the marketing plan is veggie-centric, the slogan is “Not Just For Veggies”. In other words, it is the concept of embracing “flexitarianism” which is introduced not only for vegetarians but for meat-eaters, too.

Firstly, from the first veggie shop it can be seen that a meat-free environment generates a positive energy and people are interested in it. Besides, as vegetarianism becomes more mainstream, vegetarian food is more attractive and will have better textures and flavours.

Secondly, Pret surprises vegetarians with delights such as Dairy-free Chocolatey Coconut Bite and Cacao & Orange Pot which helps them enjoy the sweet things in life! Furthermore, vegans give the thumbs up owing to the fact that more options are provided; Dark Chocolate & Almond Butter cookie is the most popular sweet.

Last but not least, the new point of Pret is that people do not need to be vegetarian to enjoy the food. It is “on-trend’’ to eat healthier and promote a greener planet. On the other hand, this change leads to a gradual transition for all those meat-eaters.

Who benefits from Pret’s future plans being successful:

Pret is a very socially responsible and sustainable corporation with many plans and projects for the wellbeing of its staff, the general public and the environment.

Pret House

The house is a partnership with West London Mission. Pret a Manger is offering homeless people a house to live and work. The clients receive advice on how to open a bank account and develop computer skills and literacy.

Global Plastic Pledge

1. Make it 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable
2. Eliminate all unnecessary single-use plastic
3. Recycling Effectively in Pret

Food Donation-Charity Run

Pret has been giving away unsold food to the homeless and disadvantaged people.

Animal Welfare

Pret has signed up to the Better Chicken Commitment and increasingly provides more veggie menu.

Conclusion

According to research, it can be noticed that Pret have made a lot of effort to plan and improve for the future and tries to treat employees as a big family. Pret not only gives employees huge opportunities to share ideas but also improves ways to motivate them. Regarding marketing strategies, Pret built their own business strategies to explore every available possibility to be better. For instance, they are making good use of the vegetarian market and are introducing it to the public including meat-eaters. Importantly, listening to customer opinion and advice is one of the main ways to explore the latest trends. Moreover, word of mouth is an effective and costless means of promotion to establish a good reputation. In addition, it has expanded shops around the world successfully by adapting to different local tastes and preferences. Lastly, sustainable development is also a main principle; Pret takes social responsibility in protecting the environment and helping homeless people.

Bibliography

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2. Marketing WeekATEST- first standalone vegetarian store (accessed 26 February 2019)
3. Pret blog – Five early insight from our veggie pop up ( (accessed 26 February 2019)
4. Pret A Manger keeps “Veggie Pret” due to huge demand ( (accessed 26 February 2019)
5. Pret A Manger’s marketing boss on succeeding without advertising ( (accessed 26 February 2019)
6. Pret website ( (accessed 26 February 2019)
7. Research-Methodology ( (accessed 26 February 2019)
8. Research of vegetarians and vegans( (accessed 27 February 2019)
9. Pret-WE’RE GLOBAL ( (accessed 27 February 2019)