The owner of pizza chain Franco Manca is planning on opening 150 new restaurants across the UK and overseas as part of a huge expansion.
Parent company Fulham Shore, which also owns The Real Greek, says it will open ten new restaurants this financial year.
This is in addition to identifying more than 150 new locations for Franco Manca - known for its sour dough pizzas - and The Real Greek to potentially open in the future.
In the UK, the restaurant group hopes to have a total of 230 restaurants in the next seven years.
Fulham Shore has yet to confirm any locations for future openings.
The plans for expansion, confirmed today in a financial update, come despite Fulham Shore slumping to £4.8million loss for the year following a year of on-and-off closures due to the coronavirus crisis.
This is compared with a profit of £1.8million the previous year.
But David Page, executive chairman of Fulham Shore, says both restaurant chains have been trading well this financial year as restrictions for the hospitality industry were eased.
He added that Franco Manca and The Real Greek were still seeing increased demand for takeaways and deliveries.
Restaurants were allowed to open again for outdoor dining only in England from April 12, followed by indoor dining from May 17.
There are currently 55 Franco Manca restaurants and 19 Real Greek sites across the UK, all of which have now fully reopened.
Mr Page said: "Since the beginning of the current financial year commencing 29 March, the group has continued to trade profitably and ahead of management expectations, driven by strong performances across our suburban restaurants.
"From July 2021 all restaurants have been open and operating without restrictions, welcoming increasing numbers of customers as the UK's vaccination programme progresses."
He added: "In line with our long-term expansion strategy we have developed a strong pipeline of new locations, supported by favourable rental terms and the group's strong cash position.
"We plan to open ten locations during the current financial year and have identified more than 150 additional sites in line with our medium-term plans."
