Clare Clough pret

Source: Pret a Manger

Clough, who replaces new CEO Pano Christou, has been a director at Pret for nine years

Pret a Manger has announced the appointment of Clare Clough as UK MD.

Clough has been a director at Pret for nine years, first as head of food and technical and most recently in the role of global food and coffee director.

Clough oversaw the introduction of Pret’s allergy plan over the past year, including the reformulation of more than 70 recipes to remove unnecessary allergens.

Previously Clough led the development of the new vegetarian and vegan menus.

Clough replaces new CEO Pano Christou who was the last UK MD, before he assumed the position of COO.

The incoming CEO has credited the high street chain’s success over the past decade to Clough.

“Thanks to her work and leadership, Pret’s winning recipe of delicious, fresh food continues to appeal to millions of customers every year,” said Christou.

“Importantly, Clare has been instrumental in redesigning our food production processes as part of Pret’s allergy plan. Her knowledge of Pret and deep understanding of our customers makes her the ideal person to take our UK business forward as we enter a new chapter in Pret’s history.”

Clough previously worked in commercial and technical roles for Tesco, having graduated with a degree in food technology from the University of Reading.

“I’m honoured to take on this role and to lead Pret’s outstanding teams across the UK,” said Clough. “Pret’s team members have been the heartbeat of Pret’s success over the past decade, and with the acquisition of Eat, the expansion of Veggie Pret and our plans to grow Pret online, we have a huge opportunity to take Pret to even more customers over the next few years.

“I’m looking forward to building on the success we’ve achieved so far, and to growing our unique combination of outstanding customer service and delicious, fresh food and coffee across the UK.”