As the company entered the 21st century, the Greggs units were driving its growth, both in physical and financial terms. The catering market, in which the company's Bakers Oven units operated, was proving to be less vibrant than the takeaway sector. Accordingly, the company focused on improving the performance of its existing Bakers Oven stores rather than expanding the chain. During the year, the company opened 67 new shops and closed 28 shops, giving it Greggs units and Bakers Oven shops.
The year-end totals, when compared with the figures for , reflected the company's reliance on the Greggs format to drive its growth. In , the company increased the number of stores operating under the Greggs banner by 47, while the Bakers Oven units in operation at the end of the year represented a loss of eight stores.
The beginning of the new decade marked the end of an era at Greggs, as the company, for the first time in its history, plotted its future course without a Gregg at the helm. After more than 30 years of presiding over the company's fortunes, Ian Gregg announced that he was retiring as chairman of the board.
The announcement, made in , led to the appointment of Derek Netherton as chairman designate in March With Netherton and Darrington in charge, Greggs pressed ahead with its expansion. During the first half of , the company opened 24 new stores and began to convert 50 Birketts shops in Cumbria, Lancashire, and southern Scotland to Greggs stores. The company also was exploring opportunities to expand into mainland Europe by mid, with Belgium selected as the first target market.
Greggs entered mainland Europe in early , when the company opened two stores, one in Antwerp and another in Leuven. After experiencing slow sales at first, the two Belgian stores began to perform well by mid, when the company announced that it intended to open two more Belgian stores within the ensuing six months.
By this point, the company also was developing new retail formats designed for nontraditional locations. In July , the first such store opened when an outlet debuted at a gas station near Edinburgh, Scotland. Greggs' property director, in an August interview with UK Retail Briefing, disclosed other nontraditional settings for company stores, listing "office area, industrial estates, transport hubs, and roadside," as among possible sites for future expansion. At the beginning of , Darrington celebrated his 20th year as managing director of Greggs.
The foray into mainland Europe and the development of stores in nontraditional locations offered two new avenues of growth. In the future, much would depend on the company's success with these two experimental programs, as Greggs endeavored to become a more diversified retailer and assert its national dominance in new directions. Today Gregg's remains dedicated to the concept which made us a Rhode Island tradition. We are a clean, comfortable family style restaurant with delicious, high quality homestyle food at affordable prices.
We are truly a local company and take our role in the community seriously. The many charitable programs we participate in are the cornerstone of that commitment. Contact, Donate Generous Donors. McMeikan left the firm for Brake Bros. In , when it had around stores more than fast food chain McDonalds , the company announced plans for a further In , however, in the face of declining sales. Greggs stated that they were no longer intending to increase their number of stores.
In , the company complained to Google when an "offensive" satirical parody of the Greggs logo was presented in search results as the actual company logo - falling afoul of imperfections in the "Google algorithm". The firm's lighthearted social media response was noted as a "lesson in Twitter crisis management". In popular culture: Actress and model Milla Jovovich, a fan of the store and its pasties,said in that she would be willing to become the "face of Greggs", in a new marketing campaign if the firm approached her.
However, no such approach was made. In Gosforth, there is plenty of exposed brick, an old delivery bicycle mounted to the wall, and excellent i-fi. The surprising celebrity fans help. In , the actor and model Milla Jovovich , a woman without outward indicators of a doughnut habit, said she would be happy to become the face of Greggs.
The actor Thomas Turgoose is a fan, revealing in a Guardian interview that his girlfriend worked in a branch in Grimsby. Last year, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini launched her own Greggs chocolate bar for charity, and Jake Gyllenhaal said that his favourite pastime in the UK was to sit outside with a Greggs baguette.
Obesity is the elephant in the room. All but one of the diners I spoke to couched their love of Greggs in an acknowledgement that it was not the healthiest option, and said that they only stopped by once or twice a week.
There are traffic-light labels on all the products, and the company is clear about the calories and fat in its products. But the transparency is only superficial, and the FAQ on the website is full of dead ends. Our investigations team can reveal that on the Seven Sisters Road, Islington, a sausage roll is 90p, 10p more than in Gosforth. Although the bread is finished off in store, it arrives frozen.
Assistant manager Brewis told me her life had been made easier by the advent of pre-chopped sandwich fillings and salad ingredients. Greggs reveals its exact ingredients only on demand. The cheese-and-vegetable pasty recipe its office sends me makes it clear why: there are more than 50 ingredients, of varying familiarity. Hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, anyone? Equally, the pasty-tax fiasco allowed Greggs to position itself as the embattled northern charmers against the evil, cash-sucking Tory government.
The proposed tax was not aimed at punishing pasty lovers, but partly at levelling the playing field.
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