High street bakery chain Greggs has revealed plans to open up to another 160 stores in the year ahead as it cheered a strong end to 2023.
The group opened a record 220 new shops over 2023, with 33 closures and 42 relocations leaving it with 145 new sites on a net basis and taking its total estate to 2,473.
Greggs is set to open between 140 and 160 new shops on a net basis in 2024 as it looks to give customers more convenient access to its stores.
It posted a 9.4% rise in like-for-like sales across its own-managed shops in the fourth quarter, with comparable store growth of 13.7% overall in 2023.
The final quarter performance marks a slowdown on the 14.2% growth seen in the previous three months as Greggs said there was less contribution from price inflation.
The company said cost pressures were continuing to ease back, with expectations for a “more stable cost base in the coming year”.
“Wage inflation remains, although higher rates of pay across the economy will also provide support to consumer incomes,” according to the group.
Roisin Currie, chief executive of Greggs added: “We enter 2024 with plans to continue to invest in our shops and expand supply chain capacity.”