THE top boss of food and coffee shop Pret A Manger has promised to crunch the numbers to see if a store could open in Shipley, after lobbying from the town’s MP Philip Davies.

Mr Davies contacted the company’s chief executive Clive Schlee asking him to consider Shipley as a future location and received a letter saying Mr Schlee himself would visit the constituency.

Mr Davies said: “Towns like Shipley need footfall to support the existing shops and businesses there, and that is why it is important we attract more chains like Pret A Manger to Shipley - especially given how popular Costa has proved in the town centre.

“I am delighted that Mr Schlee said he will crunch the numbers and visit. He and his staff would get a very warm welcome if they choose Shipley as a location.”

In a letter to Mr Davies, Mr Schlee said it was “good to see an MP encouraging us to come into his constituency.”

He wrote: “We take a lot of trouble in choosing location. Costa is not an exact proxy as we expect much higher sales from take away customers, many of them office workers.

“We have done extremely well in affluent towns and we will run the numbers for Shipley with particular interest. I will make a point of going up there myself too.”