A&W launching trial of Pret A Manger brand

VANCOUVER - A&W plans to open the first trial of UK-based chain Pret A Manger this summer in Vancouver after signing an agreement granting the restaurant chain with master franchisor rights in Canada.

A&W says it is introducing Pret's freshly made food and organic coffee as part of a two-year pilot where it will open the Pret brand within A&W restaurants in select Canadian markets.

If the trial phase is successful, A&W Food Services will have the exclusive right to expand the Pret brand across Canada based on an agreed upon development schedule.

A&W chief executive Susan Senecal believes Canadian consumers will respond "very positively and come to love the Pret brand and all that it represents."

The A&W Fund receives royalties equal to three per cent of gross sales at 1,000 A&W restaurants in the royalty pool. The royalty would also apply to Pret products sold in restaurants.

Pret A Manger, which opened in London in 1986, offers sandwiches, salads and wraps, along with organic coffee in more than 550 shops in the U.K., U.S. and several other countries.

Photo courtesy of IStock.