Foodservice Discontinuity Creating Opportunity

Chain Restaurant customer counts have been averaging close to 2.8% decline in customer counts for the past five years. That was unsustainable according to Johnson who states “14% customer count declines over five years, without a business model change, can’t last much longer for many chain operators.”  It’s time for restaurant operators to embrace the Grocerant niche and evolve their business model.   

Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson,  stated restaurant discontinuity is the direct result of new competition in the Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared meal and meal component grocerant niche specifically evolving grocery store service delis, convenience stores, and dollar stores. 

Given the ‘cash’ infusion by the US Federal Reserve by the end of the year Q4 2020, an inflation of 2.5% to 3.1% is very likely.  Restaurants that want to drive brand relevance, top line sales, and bottom-line profits with need to evolve customer relevance adding incremental meals, meal components, and mix & match foodservice options according to Johnson.

When the pandemic subsides, and restaurants reopen, if they continue to look more like 1990 than 2021 the results are simple to predict, more turnover in at the CEO level for chain restaurants, and more store closing.  New points of fresh food distribution are popping up and new suppliers are selling branded niche fresh food meals and meal components that look a lot like entrees from yesterday’s chain restaurant menus.

Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat an Heat-N-Eat fresh food sales are expected to increase 9.2% during 2020. How is it that C-stores have evolved their business model with Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat an Heat-N-Eat fresh food, grocery stores have evolved their model with Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat an Heat-N-Eat fresh food, furniture stores the ilk of IKEA reports sales of Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat an Heat-N-Eat fresh food at over $2 Billion a year and yet chain restaurants look more like yesterday than tomorrow?

So, back in the day (2015) the team at Foodservice Solutions® released a White Paper Restaurant Consumer Discontinuity; we noted consumer migration in food format preference from meals eaten in restaurants to fresh prepared meals bought and eaten at home.  The undercurrents of consumer migration from Eating-Out too Eating-Out while Eating-In in larger part was driven by The 65 inch HDTV Syndrome.  

It’s true, 63.7% of all U.S. households are comprised for one or two people. 80+% of Americans visit a fast food restaurant at least once a month. Regular readers of this blog know we regularly documented that consumers like to mix and match meal components and they can get them fast at fast food restaurants. Mix and match meal bundling is a benchmark for success within the grocerant niche. Don’t capitulate another year and let consumer discontinuity linger.

The latest Foodservice Solutions® grocerant scorecards reveal that 78.1% of consumers believe grocery store deli fresh foods are ‘better-for-you’ than most restaurant meals. If you are selling fresh food and your outlets look more like yesterday than tomorrow and your year over year customer counts are declining it might to time to call in some outside-eyes.  Are you looking a customer ahead? Or are you looking at yesterday customer today? 

Meal time is now becoming a time of convenient meal participation, with differentiation and individualization for the entire family.  The ability of the retailer to empower consumer choice within a bundled offering creates an additional platform for success. Success does leave clues?

Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced business development. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit us on our social media sites: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Battle for Share of Stomach