Pret A Manger’s Recipe for a Revival? Meal Deals and £13 Salads

Pret A Manger Ltd.’s former Chief Executive Officer Clive Schlee once pledged that the sandwich and coffee chain would “never, ever do a meal deal.” Now, years later, the lunch spot favored by City of London workers is finally offering Britain’s squeezed consumers a sandwich, bag of chips and a drink from £6 ($7.85). If that doesn’t lure them, perhaps a giant salad for almost £13 will.

Current CEO Pano Christou is trying out inventive ways to attract a broader range of people to its stores as Pret grapples with higher taxes, energy costs, business rates, wages, post-Brexit labor shortages, more people working from home, and even shop theft. Further tax rises in tomorrow’s budget could add to the pain.