Greggs PLC (LSE:GRG) sales surged past £2 billion in 2024 but the bakery chain cautioned that high street growth had slowed recently due to the subdued economy.
Roisin Currie, chief executive, added “Lower consumer confidence continues to impact High Street footfall and expenditure,” but said Greggs' value-for-money offer and the quality of its offering “position us well to meet the headwinds we expect to see in the year ahead”.
Annual sales on a like-for-like rose by 5.5% over the whole of 2024 but slowed to 2.5% in the final quarter due to lower high street footfall.
Total sales rose by 11.3% to £2.1 billion as 145 new shops opened on a net basis but slowed to 7.7% in the final three months.
In total, Greggs had 2,618 shops trading on 28 December 2024 and the bakery chain reiterated it intends to open 140 to 150 net in the current twelve months.
Year-end net cash was £125 million (2023: £195 million) with the full-year profits to be in line with current market forecasts.