Starbucks is Growing after 46 Years Are You

If success leaves clues and it does one clue that no one in the foodservice sector should overlook is ‘watch what Starbucks does’ according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based global foodservice consultancy www.FoodserviceSolutions.us . 

Most regular readers of this blog know that Starbucks was founded in 1971 and is now over 46+ years old and not only a category leader it is an industry leader in Coffee, Retail CPG, Foodservice Technology, Customer Service, Grocerant niche Fresh Food, personal use coffee pots, cups OK you know I could go on and on.  In fact the team at Foodservice Solutions® has named Howard Schultz Food Merchant of the year more than on three occasions. Is your brand evolving selling more food more products that last year?

Now Foursquare released its Quick-Service Restaurant Loyalty Index. The company ranked the top 50 chains in the U.S., according to customer loyalty. Foursquare analyzed the foot traffic trails of more than 2.5 million Americans for the study no small feat.  Here are the top 10 chains, ranked.

 Starbucks,  McDonald’s,   Dunkin’ Donuts  Tim Hortons  Chick-fil-A,    Whataburger,  Sonic Drive-In,   The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf,   Taco Bell, and  Panera Bread. 

Consumers are dynamic not static the only way Starbucks can lead in customer loyalty after 46 years is they continue to evolve.  Recently Starbucks closed it online retail store, do you know why?  Online Starbucks consumer touchpoints were rated some of the best in the industry.  So why did they close it?  What have you changed up lately?  Where is your growth coming from?  Is your brand FIRST in any category?

Are you trapped doing what you have always done and doing it the same way?  Interested in learning how www.FoodserviceSolutions.us can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.

Food Retailers and Technology are Forever Inseparable

When it comes to retail foodservice today technology is seemingly as important a fresh food with flavor according to Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.  How customers order their food, where they order from are evolving how we define service in foodservice today. 

In a new study conducted by Oracle Hospitality titled “The Hotel 2025 and Restaurant 2025 reports conducted in February 2017 proved to be very insightful. Here are some of the insights:

Recognition and Personalization Will be a Driver for Future Technologies

• 33 percent of restaurant and 72 percent of hotel operators say that guest recognition via facial biometrics will be in use within the next five years.
• 31 percent of restaurant guests and 41 percent of hotel guests will be more likely to visit an establishment with greater frequency if they are recognized by a server or associate without having to give their name or show a loyalty card.
• Both restaurant (49 percent) and hotel (62 percent) guests agree that having this recognition would improve their experience.
• 28 percent of restaurant customers would visit more often and 45 percent said it would improve their experience if service was faster because they were recognized.
• 42 percent of restaurant guests find suggestions based on health invasive and 68 percent find suggestions based on digital footprint invasive.
• 47 percent of hotel guests agree that using artificial intelligence to suggest items based on past purchases would improve their experience.
• 72 percent of hotel operators agree that AI-based systems that leverage guest preferences and buying history to make targeted dining recommendations will be mainstream by 2025.

Consumers are Warming to Voice-Activated Experiences

• 36 percent of restaurant guests say ordering through a virtual assistant would improve experience and 17 percent would visit more often, along with 50 percent and 33 percent of hotel guests respectively.
• 59 percent of hotel guests believe controlling their room via a voice-activated device would enhance the guest experience and operators agree. Hotel operators polled indicated that managing room control and ambiance management (78 percent) via voice activation would be widespread by 2025. Hotel operators also believed that ordering room or hotel services (70 percent) via voice activation would be adopted by 2025.
• Operators are keen on gathering customer feedback by voice; 61 percent of restaurant operators and 68 percent of hotels said this will be in use in the next 5 years.

Virtual Reality will Enhance the Booking and on-Property Experience in Hotels

• Consumers also indicated that virtual reality tours of hotel properties (66 percent) and virtual reality lounges for entertainment (44 percent) would improve the guest experience.
• Hotel operators also believe virtual reality technology will be widespread by 2025 with a variety of use cases: staff training (68 percent), guest entertainment on property (64 percent), and previewing meeting rooms (63 percent).

Robots Won’t be Replacing Hospitality Staff Anytime Soon

• 50 percent of restaurant guests said being served by a robot would not improve the guest experience and 40 percent would visit less.
• 37 percent of hotel guests said being served by a robot would not improve the guest experience and 22 percent would visit less.
• 64 percent of restaurant and 58 percent of hotel operators say that the use of robots for cleaning is appealing.

Operators Begin To Consider Investment in Wearable Technology

• 51 percent of restaurants and 63 percent of hotels say staff activity monitoring via wearable device will be in use in the next 5 years.
• 59 percent of restaurants and 78 percent of hotels say that staff checking into work and onto workstations via wearable device will be in use in the next 5 years.

Do your marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may the clue you need to propel your continued success.

Casey's General Store Evolving with Relevance

Casey's General Stores was founded in 1959.  During the past 58 years Casey’s has never stopped evolving today with over 1957+ they continue to evolve.  It was less than two years ago that Casey’s they developed a mobile initiative, however today that initiative is a key growth area for Casey’s according to our Grocerant Guru® that’s evolving with relevance.

Casey's President and CEO Terry Handley said the company is encouraged by the gains in its online ordering program and mobile app program.  “Since its rollout in January 2016, total downloads of Casey's mobile app have exceeded 850,000 and that number continues to grow,”

According to the team at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® strategic partnerships are essential in elevating and evolving brands today. Casey's understands that and partnered with OpenStore by GasBuddy to launch its mobile app.

When using the app, consumers can navigate to their nearest Casey's location, check gas prices, find the latest deals and product offerings, and order pizza from their smartphones, The app launch closely followed Casey's implementation of online ordering, which proved succesful.

Handley continued “the amount of pizza orders completed online has climbed to approximately 14 percent, and the basket ring of an online order continues to be around 20 percent higher compared to telephone orders.”

Casey's will continue to evolve and in 2018 they will be taking further steps to enhance digital engagement with its customers, including the launch of a loyalty program. Handley stated “"We believe we have an opportunity to widen our customer base and increase revenue as a result,"

Consumers are dynamic not static and Casey’s is one retailer that is not too old to evolve.  Success does leave clues www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  is the global leader in grocerant niche business development.  We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities.  Has your company had a Grocerant ScoreCard completed a Grocerant Program Assessment, or new Grocerant niche product Ideation?  Want one?  Call 253-759-7869 Email: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us

Grocerant Fresh Food Growth Drives Disruption

Consumer migration from legacy CPG products, legacy grocery stores, filling the pantry has hit an ebb and the preference for Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food is now leading according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson.

The undercurrent foodservice battle brewing is one for Share-of-Stomach as the lines between Restaurants, Convenience stores, Grocery stores, meal component channels grow ever thinner and the battle for top-of-mind intensifies.

Meal Kit’s, Meal Delivery, Restaurant Advance ordering Pick-Up stations, Food-trucks, and Kiosk at farmer’s markets are all full of customer relevance, authenticity  expanding consumers’ options for buying food away-from-home. 

Last year (2016) foodservice Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food generated more than half of food industry sales, exceeding grocery by 1.2%, according Acosta. The NRA’s forecast for U.S. foodservice is outpacing inflation with more than 5% expected gains as consumers face lower food and fuel costs.

The halo of ‘better-for-you’ encompassing fresh prepared meals and meal saving consumer time empowering choice in mix and match components is another leading factor driving customer adoption according to Johnson as outlined at our Grocerant Meal Mash-Up last week during the NRA show. 

A new report from Mintel shows “79% of sandwich-buying consumers are willing to pay more for premium sandwiches. And seven in 10 say they want high-quality sandwiches made with all-natural ingredients.” Clearly the ‘halo’ includes hand held food for immediate consumption.

That same ‘halo’ extends to “Hot food offerings are an integral part of convenience store foodservice with nearly nine in 10 consumers (88%), surveyed in 2016 by Technomic, stating they buy hot food items at c-stores, and purchasing is up, with 44% claiming to buy hot foods more often than last year.”

So are you wondering if Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food is still booming take a look at this VideoMining study that “demonstrated food-to-go boosts the average transaction in convenience stores by more than 14%. Sales increase by more than 19% for evening/late night baskets.”

Most legacy grocery stores lack authenticity within their offerings in the grocerant space. Many legacy grocery stores excelled at being all things for everyone back in the 1970’s, 1980’s, and 1990’s however that was a strategy that worked yesterday is not working today and will not work tomorrow. 

What’s the problem with the grocery sector they lack a cohesive grocerant strategy.  What they have done is ignore or deny the core values of the grocerant niche and simply thrown a plethora of tactics into an existing footprint and new locations as if grocerant niche products were a new CPG product.  We all know how many CPG products don’t work out.

Individually most of tactics have some merits but when bundled together they do not create an avenue for customer migration but rather they create a highway without a reason to stop.    Consumers are not blurring the line between Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food so please retailers quite trying to make grocerant offering a CPG product. That CPG mind-set has been an Achilles heel for many trying to regain customer adoption. If you do you risk continued decline in market share.

Are you trapped doing what you have always done and doing it the same way?  Interested in learning how www.FoodserviceSolutions.us can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.

McAlister’s Deli Marketing Mobile Mania

Restaurants continue to reach into their marketing tool kit to drive top line sales and bottom line profits and McAlister’s Deli has pulled out the most powerful tool of all Free Food.  Simply put free food drives trial, and customer adoption like no other tool in the marketing tool kit according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson.

This Friday marks a significant milestone for McAlister’s Deli, as the fast casual restaurant chain will open the doors to its 400th location.  To celebrate the occasion and thank fans everywhere, McAlister’s is giving away free club sandwiches with the purchase of a glass of McAlister’s Famous Tea to all guests who download and place their order through the McAlister’s mobile app, May 1—4.

Now that is one of the best ways to edify your brand with consumers according to our Grocerant Guru® as it edifies the consumer interactive participatory aspects of customer relevant technology with a very strong positive Free Food. At the same time it introduces the consumers to an upgraded mobile app and expanded menu items. 

Paul Macaluso, president of McAlister’s Deli  stated “Four hundred locations is a tremendous milestone for McAlister’s, and we know it wouldn’t be possible without our dedicated team members and franchisees who have put their heart and soul into each dish served as well as our beloved ‘Tea Freaks’ whose passion for the brand makes us all excited to come to work every day…This celebration is our thank you to them and we look forward to celebrating the next 400 locations in the years to come.”

Here is how it works just follow these simple steps:

1.       Download the McAlister’s Mobile App and enable push notifications so you can receive your free club promo code. Already have the app? Double check that push notifications are enabled—this is how you’ll receive the necessary promo code.

2.       Start an order through the app, add a McAlister’s Club and 32. oz beverage to cart

3.       Enter the promo code at checkout.

Success does leave clues and brands that edify technology with pro-active brand invitations are going to continue to drive top line sales and bottom line profits.  The team at Foodservice Solutions® congratulates Paul Macaluso and his team at McAlister’s Deli on opening their 400^th store.

Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a Grocerant Program Assessment, Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or call our Grocerant Guru®.  Since 1991 www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. Contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or 253-759-7869

Free Domino's Pizza BOGO to Kickoff March Madness

Check your bracket in your office NCAA tournament pool and then turn that into Pizza pleasure as Domino's Pizza is kicking off college basketball's biggest month by offering a buy one menu-priced pizza, get one free deal for carryout customers who order online through March 19, 2017.  Everyone at Foodservice Solutions® has entered our office pool. 

Jenny Fouracre, Domino's spokesperson  stated "We wanted to give college basketball fans a special deal as they're gathering around the TV to watch the first week of tournament games,"…Now basketball fans can carry out two pizzas for the price of one when they use Domino's digital ordering channels."  There are a lot of games this weekend Pizza just might be the common thread to keep calm. 

Fourace continued “Domino's sold more than 2 million pizzas during the 2016 semifinals and championship game night combined—enough to give 31 pizzas to each person attending the final game in Phoenix this year.” …"It takes training, focus and hustle to handle the game day rush and Domino's store team members are gearing up to make great-tasting pizzas even faster than they normally do."

Here is how it works carryout customers may take advantage of the BOGO deal by ordering online at www.dominos.com or via Domino's ordering apps for iPad, iPhone, Android, Windows Phone 8, and Kindle Fire. The free pizza must be of equal or lesser value than the purchased pizza.

www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  is the global leader in grocerant niche business development.  We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities.  Has your company had a Grocerant ScoreCard completed?  Want one?  Call 253-759-7869 Email: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us

Starbucks Evolving with Consumers is Very Important

Success does leave clues and while Starbucks sales continued to grow Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson believes that the most impressive numbers that were reported during Starbucks fiscal first quarter this week were those that highlighted how well they were evolving with consumers.

As retail customers are dynamic not static it’s clear to the entire team at Foodservice Solutions® that Starbucks ability to adapt, evolve, while edifying customer relevance is second to none in the retail foodservice industry.  Here let’s look at some of the numbers we find very important:

1.       $2.1 billion loaded on Starbucks Cards in the U.S. and Canada in Q1, up 15 percent year-over-year

2.       Starbucks Card transactions reached 40 percent of U.S. company-operated transactions.

3.       Record Active membership in Starbucks Rewards grew 16 percent year-over-year to 12.9 million members in the U.S.

4.       Mobile Order and Pay represented 7 percent of U.S. company-operated transactions in the quarter, up from 3 percent in the prior year

5.       Mobile Payment reached 27 percent of U.S. company-operated transactions

So, why are these numbers so important?  The answer is they are branded.  Every time a company can edify the customer relationship with a branded item it’s important.  However when payments and money are branded the relationship is even more valuable. 

Starbucks U.S. comparable store sales increased 3 percent comprised of a 5 percent increase in average ticket and a 2 percent decrease in transactions. Credit an increase in Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food.

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, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant or twitter.com/grocerant