EAT, the upmarket national chain of sandwich shops, is planning to open an outlet in Altrincham.
The 20-year-old company is looking to move into the corner unit of George Street and Cross Street that was most recently occupied by fashion brand Utopia, which is relocating to the vacant unit next to WHSmith.
If the application goes through, EAT is planning to open by April/May.
EAT currently has 113 shops across the UK but the vast majority are in London. It does however currently have four in Manchester and one at the Trafford Centre.
The planning application has been made by Stamford Quarter owner Lunar, a joint venture company set up by Apollo Global Management and M&M Asset Management in 2014.
It is looking to change the use of a 2,142 sq ft space within the unit in order to refit it as the cafe-cum-shop.
Planned work includes the demolition of the existing internal walls and staircases, new external door and signage and an increase of the external window height.
EAT serves food including sandwiches, soup, pies, salads and coffee and it claims that food is served fresh to order.
It was founded in 1996 by husband and wife team Niall and Faith McArthur, and the first store opened on London’s Villiers Street.
It generated revenues of £94m in the year to June 2014, but despite losses of £11m it last year announced plans to double the size of the business by 2018.
It has been majority owned by Lyceum Capital since 2011.
A spokesperson for EAT told us: “This is a very exciting time for EAT as Altrincham will be the first of our new store format designed for market towns, where there is high demand for great tasting coffee, freshly made hot and cold food and delicious cakes served in a relaxed, warm environment.
“We are looking forward to opening by late May/early June and I will be sure to keep you posted regarding a firm date.”
