UK high street mainstay Greggs posted record revenues of £2 billion
The British bakery chain’s shares have still slumped 15% since the end of February.
Earlier this week, everyone’s favorite value high street bakery chain (name another?) posted record sales for 2024, after branches sold a mind-boggling £2.01 billion ($2.57 billion) worth of sausage rolls, pizza, breakfast sandwiches, and much else besides to hungry customers across the UK.
As well as breaking the impressive sales threshold, the company also made ~£204 million pre-tax profit for the year — enough to share £20.5 million among its long-serving staff as bonuses. Despite the milestones, Greggs shares slid more than 10% on its latest report after the CEO said the macroeconomic landscape was looking “tough,” with the company pointing to “challenging weather conditions” to explain why sales growth slowed more than expected in 2024. That’s been the story of Greggs’ stock for much of the last decade: two steps forward, one step back.
While the bakery continues to “innovate” across its hot shelves and fridges — its viral Mac & Cheese being just one example — one product still reigns supreme in its vast pastry portfolio: the humble sausage roll.
Roll with it
While Greggs doesn’t break out exactly how much of the £2.01 billion figure comes from individual fan favorites, like its steak bakes, bacon rolls, and yum yums, a spokesperson told the BBC that savory bakes made up a third of overall sales. And, despite recent controversial five-pence price hikes, the baker’s iconic sausage rolls are still its bestseller, with the chain shifting as many as 2.5 million a week nine years ago, when revenues sat at a comparatively paltry £894 million and it didn’t even offer a vegan version…
Food for thought: the Greggs-Pret Index, an AI-powered analysis from actual scientists on how the UK’s north/south split can be mapped by two high street mainstays.
