Greggs scraps plan to reopen stores

Greggs, which shuttered its stores in late March, had originally planned to reopen on a trial basis next Monday as part of an effort to see if it could operate effectively as Covid-19 social distancing measures were eased.

However, the group said on Friday that as a result of "significant interest" in its 20-shop trial in Newcastle and risks associated with excessive numbers of customers, it will now operate its initial trials "behind closed doors".

Greggs noted: "We will continue to review this and will invite walk-in customers into our shops only when we can be confident of doing so in the controlled manner we intended."

As of 0840 BST, Greggs shares were down 4.86% at 1,743p.