Greggs plans to add around 100–110 net new UK shops in 2026, rather than opening 110 already confirmed and named branches. During the first half, it opened 65 shops and closed 31, including relocations, producing net growth of 34 shops and taking its estate to 2,773 locations at 27 June.

The company has not published a complete address list, but railway stations, airports, roadsides, supermarkets, retail parks, hospitals and university campuses are central to its expansion strategy.

Key takeaways:

• The 2026 forecast has been revised from around 120 to 100–110 net openings.
• More than half of first-half openings were outside traditional high streets.
• Four Bitesize shops are trading, with four more expected this year.
• Around ten Greggs Express installations are due to be tested separately.

Greggs believes its UK estate can eventually support at least 3,500 shops, although it has not set a completion date.

How Many Greggs New Store Openings Are Planned for 2026?

The latest Greggs new store openings forecast is around 100–110 net shops during 2026. This is slightly below the earlier target of approximately 120, reflecting a more selective approach to securing suitable properties rather than a retreat from the wider expansion strategy.

How the shop figures compare:

Estate measure	Confirmed position
Gross shops opened in H1 2026	65
Shops closed, including relocations	31
Net shops added in H1 2026	34
Total shops at 27 June 2026	2,773
Franchised shops within the estate	627
Expected net additions in 2026	100–110

Of the 65 openings, 27 were franchised units and 17 were relocated shops. Relocations are included in gross opening and closure figures, which is why reports of individual launches should not be added together and treated as Greggs’ net estate growth.

The planned Greggs Express installations are excluded from these shop-opening figures because they are smaller self-service offers rather than full shops.

Where Are The New Greggs Stores Expected To Open?

Greggs is concentrating on UK catchments where it remains underrepresented, particularly places that can generate additional customer visits without significantly reducing sales at nearby branches.

Confirmed second-half activity includes work to open shops at Liverpool Lime Street, London Euston and London Victoria railway stations.

The company has also moved its Birmingham New Street branch to a larger and more prominent unit. These projects demonstrate the emphasis on major transport hubs, although individual schedules may still be affected by property and construction requirements.

The broader pipeline includes:

• Petrol-station forecourts and roadside developments
• Supermarkets and retail parks
• Railway stations and airports
• Hospitals and university campuses
• Industrial estates and employment centres
• Towns or suburbs with limited existing coverage

Greggs has not announced that every UK nation or region will receive a fixed allocation. Openings depend on available properties, commercial partnerships, local demand and whether each site meets the company’s investment criteria.

What Types Of Locations Is Greggs Targeting?

The expansion plan combines conventional shops with smaller formats and partner-operated sites, allowing Greggs to enter spaces that cannot accommodate a full high-street branch.

Travel Hubs And Railway Stations

Transport locations give the business access to commuters and travellers throughout the day. Bitesize shops are particularly suited to station concourses where footfall is high but available retail space is restricted.

London Bridge became the fourth Bitesize location in June 2026, following Sevenoaks railway station, Dartford station and Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet.

The London Bridge unit is the third Greggs within that station and serves a transport hub used by approximately 55 million passengers annually.

Why Are Roadside And Forecourt Locations Important?

Roadside shops can serve commuters, commercial drivers and customers travelling outside normal town-centre shopping hours. Greggs reached its 2,500-shop milestone with a branch at a petrol forecourt in Cobham, as detailed in the official shop milestone announcement.

That was the eighth shop opened with the supermarket operator at the time and took the number of Greggs shops operating with major supermarket partners to 50.

Retail Parks, Workplaces And Public Sites

More than half of Greggs’ first-half openings were in non-traditional settings, including supermarkets, petrol forecourts, hospitals, retail parks and university campuses.

Priority advantages:

• Longer opening periods can capture breakfast, lunch and evening demand.
• High-footfall sites can generate repeat visits from commuters and workers.
• Partner locations can reduce reliance on traditional high-street property.
• New catchments can improve access without placing branches too close together.

This mixed-location model is designed to increase convenience while protecting the performance of established shops.

Has Greggs Published A Full List Of New Store Locations?

No complete public list of all shops contributing to the 100–110 target has been released. The figure is corporate guidance for net estate growth, not a schedule of guaranteed addresses.

Several factors explain why locations are disclosed gradually. Leases may remain under negotiation, planning permission may be required, construction dates can change and a reported opening may be a relocation rather than an additional shop. Some locations are also announced first by landlords, transport operators or franchise partners.

Annual targets should not be confused across different reporting periods. When the 2,500th shop opened two years earlier, the company was aiming to launch 140–160 shops during that particular year. Its current 2026 guidance is 100–110 net additions.

Consumers can use the company’s shop finder for branches that are already trading, but proposed sites should be treated as provisional until an opening date is officially confirmed.

Why Is Greggs Expanding Beyond Traditional High Streets?

Traditional high streets remain part of the estate, but alternative locations offer access to customers while they travel, work, study or visit essential services.

Greggs assesses new sites partly by examining whether they create genuinely additional visits. In the first half of 2026, 62% of new openings excluding relocations were in areas without another Greggs within one mile, compared with 53% during 2025. Where a shop opened within a mile of an existing branch, the average transfer of sales from nearby shops was below 5%.

Why the location strategy matters:

• New catchments can expand total customer reach.
• Less duplication reduces the risk of shops competing with one another.
• Hospitals and campuses provide regular weekday demand.
• Travel and roadside sites can support longer trading hours.
• Flexible property formats widen the number of viable locations.

The evidence suggests the strategy is focused on incremental demand rather than simply increasing branch density in areas already well served.

How Are New Greggs Shop Formats Supporting The Expansion?

Smaller formats allow the company to reach high-footfall locations where the cost or space needed for a conventional shop would make an opening impractical.

Bitesize Greggs For Space-Constrained Locations

Bitesize Greggs offers a tailored range of products from a smaller unit. The first shop opened at Sevenoaks railway station, created ten jobs and began trading seven days a week. The concept and its intended role are explained in the official Bitesize format announcement.

Four Bitesize locations had opened by June 2026, and four more were expected during the second half. The London Bridge unit created 16 jobs and trades from 5.30am until 10pm, illustrating how compact shops can serve extended commuter demand.

How Does Greggs Express Differ From A Normal Shop?

Greggs Express is a self-service coffee and food installation intended for convenience-retailing sites where there is no existing branch. Its proposed selection includes coffee, savouries, breakfast sandwiches and doughnuts, with bundled food-and-drink deals.

Three installations were already being tested with a franchise partner at the half-year stage. The programme is expected to expand to around ten trials during 2026, but these units are additional to, and excluded from, the 100–110 net-shop target.

Commercial Partnerships And Flexible Expansion

Franchise and commercial partners help Greggs access supermarkets, service stations and transport sites. The model also supported the May 2026 opening at Tenerife South Airport, the company’s first airport shop outside the UK, operated through an international travel-retail partnership.

The Tenerife branch is separate from the UK opening target, and further overseas development remains an opportunity rather than a confirmed rollout.

What Do Greggs’ Latest Results Reveal About Store Growth?

New shops were a significant contributor to first-half growth, although menu development, grocery partnerships and cost control also influenced the results.

First-half performance:

Measure	H1 2026	H1 2025	Change
Total sales	£1,101.5m	£1,027.7m	7.2%
Operating profit	£86.5m	£70.4m	22.9%
Pre-tax profit	£76.0m	£63.5m	19.7%
Company-managed LFL sales	—	—	2.1%
Franchise LFL system sales	—	—	1.3%

Like-for-like figures cover established shops, while total sales also include the benefit of estate expansion. This distinction explains how overall revenue can grow faster than sales at existing branches.

The chicken roll was described as a standout launch, while iced matcha drinks and protein-focused salads supported demand during hot weather. Home delivery represented 6.9% of sales; three-quarters of company-managed shops accepted delivery orders, whose average basket value was about three times that of a walk-in transaction.

Cost inflation was 2.2%, while £7 million of a planned £11 million in structural savings had been delivered. Full-year expectations remained unchanged, with underlying pre-tax profit expected to be broadly similar to 2025’s £172 million.

Shares were reported 11.54% higher at 1,885p on Wednesday morning and closed 18.5% higher at £20.02. The figures reflect different points in the same trading day rather than conflicting reports.

Can Greggs Reach At Least 3,500 UK Shops?

The company believes there is sufficient demand and property availability to support at least 3,500 UK shops, but this is a long-term opportunity rather than a dated guarantee.

The Gap Between Today’s Estate And 3,500

Moving from 2,773 to 3,500 shops would require 727 additional net locations. At the stated medium-term rate of at least 100 net openings annually, simple arithmetic suggests roughly seven years of growth, but actual progress will depend on closures, relocations and site availability.

How Will Derby And Kettering Support Growth?

The latest interim results statement links the target directly to greater manufacturing and logistics capacity. Derby is a 23-acre site expected to become fully operational by the end of 2026, while Kettering is planned to begin operating in 2027 with increased automation.

Chief executive Roisin Currie said:

“We remain focused on opening shops in more catchments and introducing convenient ways for customers to pick up Greggs favourites.”

Factors That Could Affect The Opening Rate

Property supply, planning, construction costs, consumer confidence and the performance of smaller formats could alter the pace. The company has therefore retained a disciplined site-selection process rather than committing to a fixed completion year.

Its 2026 capital-expenditure forecast was reduced from £200 million to around £180 million, while higher operating costs from the Derby site are expected to place pressure on second-half profit.

What Happens Next For Greggs New Store Openings?

The second half of 2026 should provide clearer evidence of whether Greggs can reach the upper end of its revised target.

Developments to watch:

• New station shops are planned for Liverpool Lime Street, London Euston and London Victoria.
• Four further Bitesize locations are expected during the second half.
• Greggs Express testing is due to expand towards ten installations.
• Local announcements should reveal more individual addresses and opening dates.
• The next scheduled trading update is due on 1 October 2026.

That update may provide revised estate numbers, early performance data from new formats and further information about the second-half pipeline.

Conclusion

Greggs new store openings are increasingly focused on places where customers travel, work and shop rather than solely on traditional high streets. The company expects 100–110 net additions in 2026 and believes at least 3,500 UK shops are achievable over the longer term.

However, that forecast is not a confirmed list of 110 addresses. Progress will depend on property availability, closures, relocations, partner sites and the performance of Bitesize Greggs and Greggs Express.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are All New Greggs Shops Operated Directly By The Company?

No. The estate includes company-managed and franchised locations, with 627 of the 2,773 shops franchised at 27 June 2026.

Will Every New Greggs Branch Have The Same Menu?

Not necessarily. Product ranges can vary according to shop size, equipment and format, with Bitesize and Express locations offering more focused selections.

Do Relocated Greggs Shops Count As New Openings?

A relocation can appear in both gross openings and closures. It may replace an existing shop without increasing the final net estate figure.

Will The New Shops Create Local Jobs?

Many staffed branches create local roles, but employment varies by shop size and operating model. The first Sevenoaks Bitesize shop created ten jobs, while London Bridge created 16.

Is The Tenerife Shop Included In The UK Target?

No. Tenerife South Airport is an overseas franchise location and is separate from the forecast for 100–110 net UK openings.

Can A Proposed Greggs Opening Be Delayed?

Yes. Lease negotiations, planning decisions, construction work and operational requirements can change an expected location or opening date.

How Can Customers Find Their Nearest Trading Branch?

Customers can use the official shop finder to see established locations and current opening hours. Proposed shops should be verified through reliable corporate or local announcements.

Note:

The 100–110 figure must be described as expected net UK shop openings in 2026, not as 110 named or guaranteed branches. Locations under negotiation, awaiting planning decisions or reported without confirmation should remain clearly labelled as proposed. The article follows the supplied source-verification and information-gain requirements.