Those challenges are especially acute in New York, where "it's harder to keep a reputation than to make one," said Dennis Lombardi, vice president of Technomic, a consulting firm in Chicago. "If you are not up to consumer expectations there are lots of other options."
So far, Pret A Manger has had some surprise hits, like the Coronation Chicken sandwich, slathered in a mango chutney sauce, which sells for US$5.25. But not everything crosses the Atlantic with equal ease. Its all-day breakfast of sausage, bacon, egg salad, tomato and lettuce on granary bread, a best seller in London, fell flat in New York.
And some potential customers remain relatively unimpressed. Peter Baracskai, a 34-year-old property manager, said he stopped by the Broad Street store but did not buy because the food looked too "foo foo" and not hearty enough to fill him up.
But Colin Macintosh, 34, a New Jersey native who now lives in London, said he routinely grabs a Pret A Manger sandwich for lunch, especially since Commerzbank Securities, where he sells convertible bonds, stopped picking up the bill for employee lunches as part of a cost-cutting measure.
"I can't be out of the office too long," Macintosh said. "For something quick, there's nothing like it."
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