What do consumers think a Grocerant is? According to Steven Johnson, the Grocerant Guru® at
Tacoma, WA-based Foodservice
Solutions®, the man who coined the term "Grocerant," it is
"any retail food item that is fresh prepared Ready-2-Eat or
Heat-N-Eat." Traditionally, these items have been found in grocery store
service delis, convenience store prepared food sections, and restaurant
takeout, drive-thru, and delivery menus. However, the grocerant niche has
expanded significantly and now includes supermarkets, service delis,
convenience stores, dollar stores, virtual restaurants, food trucks, home meal
delivery companies, and retailers like IKEA, Macy’s, and Costco.
The Expanding Grocerant Universe
Grocerant fresh food has transcended traditional retail
boundaries. Increasingly, brands such as IKEA,
Ralph Lauren, Barnes & Noble, Nordstrom, and even warehouse clubs like Costco are leveraging fresh food to enhance
customer engagement and drive sales. Digital innovation has further accelerated
this trend, enabling food trucks, food carts, pop-up restaurants, and virtual
kitchens to compete for consumer dollars. The result? A food marketplace that
prioritizes portability, convenience, and mix-and-match meal component
bundling.
Fast-food drive-thru’s and delivery services have been
pivotal in pushing the home meal replacement (HMR) trend forward. With 75% of
all quick-service restaurant (QSR) orders in the U.S. now coming from
drive-thru’s, according to QSR Magazine,
the demand for convenient, Ready-2-Eat solutions has never been higher.
Simultaneously, restaurant delivery sales have surged, growing by more than 85%
since 2019, per the National Restaurant Association. This surge has conditioned
consumers to expect meal solutions that are hot, fresh, and require minimal
preparation. Grocerant offerings align perfectly with this shift, bridging the
gap between restaurant-quality food and at-home dining.
Why Grocerants Are Winning the Battle
for Share of Stomach
At noon, most consumers haven’t decided on dinner. In fact,
81.3% of American consumers are unsure of their dinner plans at noon, and 64.6%
are still undecided at 4 PM, according to Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant ScoreCards. This
last-minute decision-making fuels demand for high-quality, convenient meal
solutions.
Changing household dynamics further reinforce the grocerant
trend. According to the U.S. Census Bureau,
62% of U.S. households now consist of just one or two people. These smaller
households are far less likely to cook from scratch and instead favor
portioned, Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat meal solutions that eliminate food waste
and reduce preparation time. Fast-food chains, which have long dominated the
single-meal segment, are now facing increased competition from grocery stores
and convenience stores that offer meal bundles tailored for one or two people.
Today’s time-starved consumers prefer meal components they
can bundle into a personalized family meal without the hassle of cooking from
scratch. Supermarkets and convenience stores have capitalized on this,
expanding their fresh-prepared food offerings. As a result, they are not only
capturing market share from traditional restaurants but also cannibalizing
legacy CPG sales, creating a major industry shift.
Presentation Matters: The Retail
Struggle with Fresh Food
Many legacy grocery stores suffer from a fresh food
presentation problem. Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat offerings must look fresh and
taste great, yet many grocery and C-store chains struggle with the visual
appeal of their prepared foods.
Restaurants have a clear advantage when serving plated
meals designed for immediate consumption (“food for now”). Retailers, on the
other hand, primarily sell “food for later,” which is often pre-packaged and
visually unappealing. This can reduce consumer expectations and limit sales
potential.
A key example of overcoming this challenge is Wawa, which ensures that its ready-to-eat foods
look fresh and enticing in to-go packaging. By exerting control over the
presentation, branding, and bundling of meal components, Wawa enhances consumer
confidence and drives incremental sales.
The Future of Grocerants: A Global
Phenomenon
Across the world, department stores, shopping malls, and
airport kiosks are integrating grocerant-style offerings. Consumers can now
grab everything from fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and casseroles to sushi,
steak, and single-portioned desserts. These items are available for pickup or
delivery, making mealtime more convenient than ever.
With meal delivery projected to exceed $220 billion
globally by 2027, grocerants are perfectly positioned to capitalize on evolving
consumer behavior. Retailers that offer drive-thru pickup, app-based ordering,
and meal kit bundling will continue to gain market share from traditional
grocery stores and restaurants alike.
Think About This: The Grocerant Model
Redefining Meal Solutions
The grocerant niche represents the blurring of lines
between restaurants and grocery stores, catering to time-starved consumers with
Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh-prepared meals. By allowing customers to mix
and match meal components into a perfect family meal, grocerants have reshaped
the food industry, offering both in-store and takeout solutions that drive
customer adoption and long-term brand success. As drive-thru’s and delivery
services continue to dominate food sales, grocerants stand as the next frontier
in the evolution of convenience-driven meal solutions.
Don’t
over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing
ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice
Solutions®
can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient
meal participation, differentiation and individualization? Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us
No comments:
Post a Comment