Popular bakery chain Greggs has seen a strong recovery in sales since the easing of lockdown restrictions.

The leading UK food-on-the-go retailer has stores in King's Walk and Southgate Street in Gloucester, recently opened a store on Eastern Avenue in Gloucester, and is building another on Bristol Road. It also has stores in Cheltenham, Tewkesbury, Stroud, Cirencester and Lydney, among more than 2,000 outlets nationwide.

The continued strong recovery in sales means Greggs is expected to boost its financial expectations.

The easing of restrictions on non-essential retail across the UK, had meant the company expected to see increased competition as cafes and restaurants were allowed to compete more effectively with its largely takeout offer.

In recent weeks the impact of pent-up demand for retail has reduced but, nonetheless, like-for-like sales growth in company-managed shops has remained in positive territory ranging between one and three per cent when measured against the same period in 2019.

In a statement the company said: "This level of sustained sales recovery is stronger than we had anticipated and, if it were to continue, would have a materially positive impact on the expected financial result for the year.

"We will provide an updated picture when we present our interim results on 3rd August 2021."

Earlier this year, Greggs reported a £13.7m loss for 2020 after sales fell during the pandemic but considered at the time that it was well-placed for recovery.

The business saw sales fall by 31 per cent to £811.3m in 2020, compared to a pre-tax profit of £108.3m in 2019.

But sales recovered well in the second half of the year, making £51.5m profit in the second half compared to a £65.2m loss in the first.