Pret A Manger shakes up board as Sinclair Beecham returns

Pret founder Sinclair Beecham has rejoined the business as it shakes up its board to refocus the business on its “long-held values”.

Returning with Beecham is Larry Billett, Pret’s chairman from 2003 to 2011 and board member until 2018. Billett will be a non-executive director and chair of the audit committee, while Beecham will not formally join the board.

Konrad Meyer, who led the acquisition of Pret by JAB in 2018, has been appointed chairman, succeeding Olivier Goudet. Patrice de Talhouët and Nathalie Roos will step down as non-executive directors.

Meyer said: “With Larry’s return to the board, and Sinclair’s continued support, we are bringing together the brilliance of Pret’s past with the promise of Pret’s future, as we support [chief executive] Pano Christou and the Pret management team in delivering its winning recipe of delicious, freshly made food and organic coffee with fast, friendly service.”

Beecham and Billett said in a joint statement: “Our partnership with JAB since 2018, even through the unprecedented hardship of the pandemic, has been exemplary. The long-held values of Pret’s culture, combined with effective innovation, have been the wind in Pret’s sails since the beginning in 1986.

“We look forward to working with the board and Pret’s strong management team to reaffirm Pret’s mission to do what’s best for the customer, which was always the simple foundation beneath Pret’s growth.”

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