Foodservice innovation provides long term tangible brand value.

Retail foodservice provides consumer an endless supply of new offerings. Daily we can drive down the street and see innovative new retail food concepts, new food products advertised on TV or jazzy remolded stores chain stores. Your customers do the same thing and they try one or two of them. If they like the experience, you have lost a customer.

Julia Stewart one the America’s penultimate proactive retail foodservice success stories utilizes a continuum of innovative tactics intertwined into a dynamic brand strategy that allows DineEquity and it restaurants to prosper even in difficult times. Balancing menu innovation, brand positioning and unit imaging like a conductor of and world class orchestra; Julia Stewart understands that consumers and brands must be dynamic to succeed.

Howard Shultz understands business but has never let that interfere with his compassion for his employees. Innovation in many cases means new products, new look or new packaging. Howard Shultz was the first in the industry to provide Health Care benefits for part-time employees. This created lower turnover than other “QSR” companies positioning Starbucks as a “better for you” and better for it’s employees company. In addition it crated a top of mind value added continuum reference for consumers. The halo affect of such positioning is a platform that was revived and is again thriving all during poor economic conditions.

Both companies’ brands are expanding today outside the US and within the US, building top line value while cultivating current customer with proactive innovating new product services and imaging. Most importantly they are each reaching out via new avenues of distribution and markets attracting new customers.

Join me here on my blog for insights, information and inspiration. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or on Facebook at Steven Johnson