COFFEE Republic pledged to open its first store in four years yesterday after drawing encouragement from its recently launched deli bar format.

Nine of the firm's 46 outlets have so far been converted into delis - offering fresh food as well as coffee - and a further four bars have been franchised since it launched its franchise scheme in November. In the six months to September, Coffee Republic reported an operating loss of £661,000, against a deficit of £800,000 in the same period in 2004. Sales fell 13.7 per cent to £7.7m after the closure of several "non-core" bars.