Get ready to enjoy freshly handmade food and delicious organic coffee as Pret A Manger takes up residence in Bishop’s Stortford next week.
Opening in Potter Street on Friday February 17 as part of the revamped Jackson Square shopping centre, the new shop will be serving up breakfast, sandwiches, wraps, salads, protein pots, hot food and bakery goodies, all made fresh on site every morning and throughout the day, alongside delicious snacks.
As well as its vast range of food options and snacks, Pret offers a host of hot drinks – teas, coffees, lattes and more – which are made by experienced baristas and will be available to take away, for home delivery or to enjoy in a friendly and relaxed environment in the new 50-seat restaurant.
And the beloved chain is being brought to Stortford town centre by a people-first company that is run by a man at the heart of the local community. James Lipscombe is the chief executive of The Chesterford Group (TCG), the Start Hill-based business whose subsidiary Joy Brands was named one of the three Pret franchise launch partners for the whole of the UK.
TCG is one of the largest independently-owned fish and chip shop chains in the country, with branches including fishnchickn on Thorley Park in Stortford and Churchill’s in Cambridge Road, Stansted. It has 45 locations and employs around 850 people.
James went to Bishop’s Stortford College, as did his older brother Simon, who is now an English teacher and housemaster at the Maze Green Road school. The family home is in Great Chesterford, but James moved to Stortford almost 20 years ago. His wife Amy, who went to Birchwood High School and then The Bishop’s Stortford High School for sixth form, works in marketing. They have two children who go to school in the town.
James is the manager of his son’s BSCFC youth football team and he is chairman of players and a vice-president at Bishop’s Stortford rugby club having retired from playing last season, overseeing the social men’s teams. He also still finds time to play for Bishop’s Stortford Cricket Club in the summer.
And he cannot wait to give customers in the town he calls home the opportunity to enjoy the Pret experience.
“I’m a massive fanboy of Pret and always have been,” said James, whose company has created 20 jobs for the new shop and town. “I love their food, I love the quality of their coffee and I love what they stand for.
“It’s going to be a lovely environment for people to come and enjoy meals and coffee, meet their friends and enjoy themselves.
“I’m really pleased to be able to bring a brand like Pret to Bishop’s Stortford. I’m part of the local community and I’ve had lots of friends message me saying they’re really excited that Pret is coming here.”
The first Pret A Manger opened in London in 1986 and as of 2021 the chain had over 420 shops in the UK, 317 of them in the capital.
“It’s a national brand people know, without national presence,” said James.
“With working habits changing and more people working and living regionally, I think this new shop opening gives them a great opportunity to go and enjoy the joy of Pret.”
TCG started its Pret journey having successfully navigated all of the challenges posed by the Covid pandemic and the lockdowns. James wanted to diversify the business and knew Pret would be a brand he would love to work with.
“One of the reasons I really wanted to work with Pret was because I felt there was no good-quality, fresh, healthy food to go on British regional high streets,” said James.
So he approached a friend who knows Pret’s global CEO, Pano Christou, and he put him in touch with him. James arranged a phone call with Christou and pitched the idea of becoming a franchisee.
Christou said it was something they had been thinking about and it ultimately led to further discussions before Pret launched their franchise operation. James’ team then had to give several presentations to Pret’s global board before being named one of the UK’s three Pret franchise partners – and TCG earned the right to have branches in Hertfordshire, Essex and Cambridgeshire by showing their passion for Pret.
“I’m looking forward to bringing Pret to the people because the quality of the food and the coffee is absolutely unmatched,” said James.
“I know Bishop’s Stortford very well having lived in the town for a long, long time and I certainly felt that, when the right unit came up, Bishop’s Stortford was going to be one of the first areas I wanted to open in.”
Part of the deal saw TCG purchase four existing Pret shops – two in Cambridge and one in Chelmsford and St Albans. His team got to grips with running those stores operationally and he is now aiming to grow the brand, with plans to open a further six stores in the next six months, including Stortford.
James has also done the operational training, which involved 3am starts, as he learned how to be a barista and worked in the kitchen at the St Albans and Cambridge stores, meaning he can help out the team in his shops if required. He also still cooks fish and chips on Friday nights so he doesn’t forget “what’s going on at the coalface”.
James said: “Pret have been fantastic to work with and they put their people first, like we do.
“When you’re a business that does that you want to make sure that anybody you work with has exactly the same values, ethics and morals as you. Pret certainly have that.”
The Stortford shop will be welcoming Pret Coffee Subscription customers. The service allows subscribers to enjoy up to five barista-made drinks a day, including teas, coffees, oat lattes, flat whites and more, for just £25 a month. And new subscribers currently get their first month for only £12.50, offering great value for money.
Also on the menu are children’s options and its expanded Made Simple range offering delicious, freshly-made favourites starting from £2.99, as well as a range of options for vegetarians and vegans.
And there will be various events and special offers to mark the store’s opening.
“We have a range of products to suit all budgets,” said James. “We’re very conscious, in a cost-of-living crisis, of making sure we offer affordable luxury to our customers.”
