McDonald’s Invests in Sandwich-Store Chain

McDonald’s Corp. said it will acquire a 33% stake in Pret A Manger, a sandwich-store chain based in Britain that’s seeking to expand in the U.S. Terms weren’t disclosed. Pret A Manger’s founders and shareholders will keep majority ownership and will manage the closely held company, which has $146 million in annual sales. The investment is the latest in McDonald’s plan to gain a greater share of the casual, take-out food market that the company can’t get through its namesake brand, spokesman Brad Trask said. McDonald’s bought Britain’s Aroma coffee cafes in 1999 and the U.S.-based Boston Market, Donatos Pizza and Chipotle Mexican Grill chains last year. Pret A Manger, founded in London in 1986, opened its first international outlet on Broad Street in New York last year. The company’s name is French for “ready to eat.” Shares of McDonald’s closed off 10 cents at $29.35 on the New York Stock Exchange.