Restaurant Sector Customer Traffic Continues in the RED Its time to Wake-up

The restaurant sector continues to bleed customers.  Just in-case you don’t understand the consequence of capitulating year over year same store customer counts for six years, well; it’s not a good thing according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

The simple fact is consumers food consumption patterns have evolved and many restaurant menu’s look more like a restaurant of the 1980’s, 1990’s, or 2005.  That my friends is a long way from what a fresh food restaurant will look like five years from now according to Johnson.  Something has to change.

Clearly the restaurant industry leadership of today is comprised of the ‘unwilling to evolve’ as they continue to follow the old CEO adage / first rule of a new CEO ‘do no harm’.  That simply has not worked and will not work moving forward. There is a clear and present danger for many legacy restaurant brands.  That danger is an increasing lack of customer relevance according to Johnson.

Restaurant sector same-store sales rose 1% in November, according to the latest Black Box Intelligence index.  Victor Fernandez, vice president of insights and knowledge for Black Box parent TDn2K, stated “same-store takeout sales are up nearly 9% year to date, according to Black Box, while dine-in same-store sales are negative.”  Just stop and think about that. 

 Back in the day the team at Foodservice Solutions® was first to identify, quantify, and qualify The 65 Inch HDTV Syndrome, and few chain restaurants were willing to evolve.  They hunkered down and practiced brand protectionism.   However, those in the foodservice that did are garnering incremental customers today.

If success leaves clues and it does restaurant brands that embrace change, evolve with consumers will do well moving forward.  If not many will continue to capitulate customer traffic, lose sales, and close stores.  Are you driving top line sales, bottom line profits, and building customer counts?

Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced business development. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities or a new menu product segment and brand and menu integration strategy.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, www.Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or www.twitter.com/grocerant/