Success Does Leave Clues for Food Retailers

 

Giving credit where credit is due.  The grocerant niche filled with Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food continues to drive top-line sales and bottom-line profits in every channel of retail foodservice.  According to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® the recent insights by the NPD group show just have important the Drive-thru and digital ordering have become.  Here let’s take a look: 

“With consumers seeking the next level of convenience, restaurant carry-out has declined, reported The NPD Group. Instead, delivery and drive-thru orders took hold during the COVID-19 pandemic and have continued since, based on NPD's continual tracking of the U.S. restaurant industry.

From February 2020 through February 2022, digital and non-digital carry-out restaurant orders declined by 2 percent while delivery increased by 116 percent, and drive-thru grew by 20 percent. Digital ordering, which grew by 117 percent in the two years, contributed to the delivery and drive-thru growth.

Although digital carry-out orders doubled during the pandemic, these gains were offset by a double-digit decline in non-digital pickup orders that account for the bulk of pickup orders. In the year ending February 2022, 76 percent of carry-out were non-digital orders, and these orders declined by 16 percent compared to the prior year. Non-digital drive-thru orders increased by 20 percent in the same period, and non-digital delivery, which represents 25 percent of delivery orders, increased by 25 percent. 

In a Battle for Share of Stomach

You Can Win

"Several factors have encouraged consumers to move away from ordering carry out. The convenience of drive-thru’s, delivery and mobile ordering, in addition to dining room closures, have influenced consumers' willingness to get out of their car, walk into a restaurant, and order to go," said David Portalatin, NPD food industry advisor and author of Eating Patterns in America. "Convenience rules and the more convenient options will win."

Today, the focus is on customized diets, nutrient intake and functional foods, according to NPD's recent "America’s Health Pulse: Closing the Gap Between Wants and Needs" report.

Four macro needs drive all consumption: fueling, wellness, connecting and gratifying. Fueling is the top driver, influencing one-third of all eating occasions. The need for wellness grew throughout the pandemic and is second to fueling as a consumption driver. Wellness now directly impacts 21 percent of all eating occasions, which amounts to billions of occasions annually. With most meals sourced from home — a behavior established long before the pandemic — NPD expects wellness as a consumption driver to remain elevated into the foreseeable future.

If you are coming to the National Restaurant Show in Chicago I suggest that you stop by the The NPD Group  booth and see what else you can learn.

For international corporate presentations, regional chain presentations, educational forums, or keynotes contact: Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions.  His extensive experience as a multi-unit restaurant operator, consultant, brand / product positioning expert, and public speaking will leave success clues for all. For more information visit GrocerantGuru.com, FoodserviceSolutions.US or call 1-253-759-7869