Consumer Trends
Top 5 LTOs in December: Craveability vs. Purchase Intent
Often, the menu items deemed the most craveable aren’t the ones consumers say they’re most likely to purchase.
The big business of franchising
Top franchise companies are driving growth, finds researcher Technomic's Top 400 Franchise Report. The 200 largest franchisees grew sales 8.2 percent in 2014, 2.5 times the rate of the Top 500 chains. Unit growth among these companies, too, was three times higher than their franchisors.
More than half of the restaurant industry’s $491 billion in sales come from the Top 500 chains. And these giants grew at a modestly stronger rate, both in terms of sales and store counts, than the industry overall. Restaurant Business focused on the leading 250 performers to identify trends for our first-ever special report delivering lessons from Technomic’s annual Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report. This special package includes lessons for all operators from the largest chains by segment, menu category and more.