Greggs is offering a new discounted meal deal. The bakery giant has created an AI formula combining two years of weather and behaviour analysis to identify the best days for workers to ditch their desks for a "Quicknic" outside. The formula weighs up lunchtime temperature, cloud cover, rain, pollen and Britain’s appetite for eating outdoors.
How the Quicknic Code Works
The "Greggs Forecasting Office" will calculate the scores for 12 regions every week, and when a region scores 24, a new £4.75 deal is unlocked. Greggs says this means the "Quicknic" could be available in Manchester while London waits for the numbers to add up.
The formula has been dubbed the "Quicknic Code", and it will allow customers to grab a cold baguette and a sausage roll from just £4.75 - a 40p saving on their lunch. Greggs says temperature has the greatest influence, while cloud, rain and pollen lower the score. Regional baselines reflecting the different temperatures at which people across Britain change their lunchtime habits and a separate Lunch Outside Index measures the nation’s appetite for eating outdoors.
Scientific Approach to Lunch Deals
Zoe Harris, customer and marketing director at Greggs, said: "Nobody has ever put mathematicians, scientists and sausage roll makers together to create a lunch deal before, but that’s what we’ve done. Determining who gets the Quicknic deal isn’t based on just one weather forecast. Our formula crunches six important factors, from temperature and cloud cover to pollen levels and chance of rain, before deciding whether our new deal becomes live in each region. It may be the most scientifically advanced sausage roll and baguette deal ever created."
Greggs says its new deal means instead of workers being stuck at their desk, they can pick up lunch, find a bench, wall or patch of grass and enjoy the British sunshine while it lasts, The Sun reported. It comes as new research conducted by Greggs reveals that the average Brit has four lunches a week sat at their desk.
Brits' Lunch Habits and Deal Availability
The study also claims that two-thirds (66%) state that they regularly regret sitting in their office for lunch when it’s sunny outside. Almost three-quarters (73%) said that a discounted meal deal available only on locally declared good-weather days would make them leave their desk for lunch.
Now, every Sunday until the end of summer, the Greggs Forecasting Office will issue its "Quicknic" forecast on social channels for the full seven days ahead, making a separate call for each of Britain’s 12 regions. The deal allows shoppers to pair a sausage roll, chicken roll, and vegan roll (pork-free) with any available cold baguettes. Greggs is urging customers to keep an eye on their local Greggs shop and social media channels to find out when the Quicknic has been activated in their area.
