(May 3, 2010)—On the heels of more than two years of recession, the restaurant industry continues to feel the results of discretionary spending pullbacks, and while it has worked margin miracles, must nevertheless work its way out of a triple threat: declining guest traffic, declining average check, and declines sales.
Going forward, restaurant operators across all segments will need a walk the fine line by balancing incentives and discounts with added value and brand enhancement, working toward weaning consumers from the downward spiral of price shopping.
The U.S. Foodservice Landscape 2010: Restaurant Industry and Consumer Trend Momentum and Migration provides unique insights into consumers’ evolving relationship with restaurants, helping restaurant operators position their brands—and menus—accordingly. Highlights of the study include 1) directional consumer behavioral and attitude analysis via Packaged Facts’ proprietary Consumer Restaurant Outlook Tracker, which identifies the consumers who will lead near-term restaurant growth; 2) Via its Consumer Restaurant Usage and Spend Tracker, unique analysis of meal usage by restaurant type, party size, and party spend, to help target consumers who can bring in higher guest check averages; 3) Share of Stomach sales analysis that trends restaurant sales by segment against its retail counterpart, and provides quarterly same-store comparable trends and guest traffic frequency trends for more than 50 restaurant brands by segment—all of which provide a thorough sense of where the industry is heading; and 4) current and future menu pricing strategies and detailed consumer brand affiliations, to provide competitive insight.
Woven throughout the report, readers will also find granular consumer insight provided via “consumer drilldowns” that shed insight on a host of pertinent guest traffic and incenting themes. Themes addressed include the degree to which healthy and new menu items influence choosing a restaurant versus choosing a menu item; the benefits of positioning gift cards & loyalty programs to healthy eaters and online order placers; targeting party spend by budget and health attitudes; and psychographic analyses of male and female Budgeters, Health Seekers, and Big Eaters.
While the report forecasts industry sales in detail through 2012, simply put, the restaurant industry will face sales challenges through the reporting period. In an environment where growth—even stasis—means taking share, knowing where menu pricing trends, sales trends, menu selection trends, and convenience trends are going is paramount. This report provides needed consultation on these themes, helping industry participants what position restaurant menus and services for tomorrow’s consumer.
Data Methodology
Our methodology rests on a balance of data-centric expertise and holistic understanding, maximizing accuracy and depth of analysis. Report data is derived from thorough analysis of a host of sources, including the following:
- Proprietary company interviews
- Proprietary consumer surveys
- The Experian Simmons National Consumer Study
- The U.S. Census Bureau
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture
- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics Retail Trade Survey
- Company presentations
- Trade associations and trade magazines
- Academic journals
- Industry conferences
- Restaurant menus
In addition to supporting analysis (such as an introduction, an executive summary, and terms & definitions), this report covers the following major topics. Please note that the final published version of this report may contain addition information. Charts/graphs, as well as major header topics, are included.
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