NCR to get two Pret A Manger stores in the next two months
New Delhi: After Mumbai, Reliance Brands Ltd. (RBL) is now planning to roll out two Pret A Manger coffee outlets in the National Capital Region (NCR) in the next two months, three people familiar with the plans said.
The first Pret A Manger store in north India will open at Gurugram’s retail destination CyberHub later this month, one of them said.
Then it will be followed by a café in Select Citywalk Mall in Saket, New Delhi in the next two months, two other sources said.
Reliance Brands has taken a space of 1,200 sq. ft. in Select Citywalk mall’s ground floor, adjacent to the H&M store and bang opposite the Massimo Dutti store, one of them said.
In April, Reliance Brands opened its first Pret A Manger (which means ‘ready to eat’ in French) cafe at Maker Maxity in Mumbai. The 2,567 sq. ft. outlet recreated the brand’s iconic London shops. Later that month, Pret A Manger opened its second outlet in Mumbai at Phoenix Palladium Mall.
The size of the Select Citywalk store will be half of the company’s first Mumbai store due to space constraints in the mall, the other person said.
“Currently, the store is under fit-outs,” the first source said asking not to be named.
A spokesperson from Reliance Brands did not respond to IndiaRetailing’s emailed questionnaire.
Pret A Manger (pronounced pret-ah mahn-zhay) will join Starbucks and Tim Hortons as the third major global coffee brand on the ground floor of the popular New Delhi shopping centre. Recently French café Paul also opened an outlet in Select Citywalk. On the other hand, DLF CyberHub boast of Starbucks, Tim Hortons, Dunkin Donuts and a host of other cafes.
Select Citywalk was in the news recently for becoming the home to Apple Inc’s first store in New Delhi and the second company-owned and operated iconic store in India, after Mumbai for the Cupertino-based tech giant.
Last year, Reliance Brands said it has partnered with the UK-based company to bring Pret A Manger to India, a café chain that began its journey in London in 1986. Currently, Pret A Manger operates around 550 cafes in various markets including the UK, US, Hong Kong, France, Dubai, Switzerland, Brussels, Singapore and Germany.
The chain currently offers a wide range of sandwiches, baguettes, salads, and soups, as well as a variety of organic coffee, tea, shakes, and smoothie options.
RBL is a subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. and began operations in 2007 with a mandate to launch and build global brands in luxury to premium segments across fashion and lifestyle.
Its current portfolio of brand partnerships comprises Armani Exchange, Bally, Bottega Veneta, Brooks Brothers, Burberry, Canali, Clarks, Coach, Diesel, Dune, EA7, Emporio Armani, Ermenegildo Zegna, G- Star Raw, Gas, Giorgio Armani, Hamleys, among others. RBL today operates 2,126 doors split into 868 stores and 1,258 shop-in-shops in India.
