Prices at Greggs 'likely' to increase again as costs soar

Greggs has warned that prices in its stores are likely to go up for the second time this year as it battles runaway increases in costs.

The bakery chain had already increased some prices at the start of the year, but it has now announced that further changes are expected. The cost of doing business is expected to rise between 6 per cent and 7 per cent for the company this year due to higher staffing and ingredient costs.

However, they said they will try to protect their reputation for being “outstanding value for money”. “This has necessitated some price increases, which were made at the start of this year, and further changes are expected to be necessary,” a Greggs spokesman said.

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“As ever, we will work to mitigate the impact of this on customers, protecting Greggs’ reputation for exceptional value in the freshly-prepared food-to-go market. Given this dynamic, we do not currently expect material profit progression in the year ahead.”

But, boss Roger Whiteside said the company will have to assess whether it is able to change prices before it does. It comes down to ensuring that customers will still choose to spend money at Greggs even if prices go up.

“We’ve got no plans to raise prices currently, but obviously that’s going to have to remain under review given the way the markets are moving around the world on commodity food prices in particular,” he said.

“If the market allows price increases to move onto customers, then we will have to attempt to do that, if it doesn’t then we won’t be able to. You’re trying to position price to make sure you maximise sales.”

The business swung back to a profit last year after