Millennials Drive Meal Delivery Today but Who’s Next

Fresh prepared foods that are Ready-2-Eat or Heat-N-Eat continue to drive every sector of retail foodservice today according to the most recent Grocerant ScoreCards conducted by Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Success does leave clues and today Millennials are passing on to their younger siblings how they like to eat, what they like to eat and most importantly how they mix and match meal components from multiple sources combining grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat with Ready-2-Heat fresh prepared foods into a ‘perfect family meal’ according to Johnson.

In new research from The NPD Group they point out that “Gen Z is the only major demographic projected to increase its use of restaurants in the next five years, as Millennials, Gen X and baby boomers are all expected to eat more meals at home”.

Our evolving demographics reveal that the grocerant niche filled with fresh prepared meals and meal components that are portable are in favor with today’s consumers according to Johnson growing in the c-store sector at 9.3% a year.  Consider this the massive size of the Millennial and boomer generations, in particular, means millions of customers will be moving away from restaurants in the coming years driven in large part because they were the first generations to embrace and drive ‘The 65 Inch HDTV Syndrome’.

So who is Generation Z, or those born between 1995 after 2015 will enter into a peak restaurant life stage by 2024, and an estimated 3.6% increase in population the next five years. There is one problem with that number it was generated based largely by immigration, and we all know immigration has come to slow crawl and the projected number may be one the high side.

Those of us of a certin age know that while Gen Z in on the go, Millennials, Gen X and baby boomers will enter life stages that move them away from eating at restaurants and toward eating more meals at home.  There is no indication they want to cook from scratch or do dishes but they want to eat at home more according to Johnson.

The NPD report found that in-home food preparation trends show that 14 percent of meals eaten in the home included an item that required no time to prepare, up from just 11 percent in 2013.

Helping to cut into restaurant sales as regular readers of this blog know is Sam Polk, co-founder and CEO of Everytable who stated “Today, more than ever, people want meals that fit within their busy lives,” …“At Everytable our mission is to make it as simple and affordable as possible for our guests to enjoy healthy meals by stopping into one of our storefronts, through our subscription service or via our Smartfridges in offices or on a campus.” All that plus customer facing technology, delivery, and office catering.

As regular readers know Everytable meal components can include salads, grain bowls and hot plates, are made from scratch in a central kitchen, individually packaged, and then sent to one of seven grab-and-go storefronts.

Once again get this Everytable’s menu items are billed as being similar in quality to fast-causal or casual-dining eateries and are priced according to individual neighborhood to ensure affordability for all. Everytable meals in underserved communities start at $5 while meals in more upscale communities start at $7 to $8.

Polk continued “85% to 90% of the meals offered are eaten off premise. The concept’s heaviest users are meal preppers / working professionals, who make lunches for the week ahead of time, or families that need to fill in lunch and dinner gaps throughout the week.

Everytable’s concept has been so well-received that Polk said plans now call for 20 to 25 new locations throughout Los Angeles within the next year, with later expansion into new markets. Restaurant customers are not eating less, they are eating somewhere else for less according to Johnson.

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/

Battle for Share of Stomach

Online Grocer Boxed understands Price & Selection Matter

Once again successful growth can be defined understood by looking at two key pillars that are the basics of retail; price and selection.  Fast-growing online grocer Boxed seems to understand the fundamentals and is targeting its growth on Millennials leveraging both price and selection according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

In May, Boxed announced that it was joining forces with Lidl to bring online ordering and Boxed Express on-demand delivery to select Lidl locations. Lidl’s stores are known as grocer with great prices and an inviting selection of relevant well priced consumer packaged good and family friended home focused retail items.

So, the story is that Boxed is one of the leading startups in the grocery business, New York-based Boxed has raised $243 million in funding. The company has been the subject of acquisition rumors, and reportedly rejected Kroger’s $400 million purchase offer last year, while holding preliminary talks with Amazon, Target and Costco, according to Bloomberg News Service.

Now Boxed has teamed up with department store chain Century 21 to introduce a curated assortment of beauty and apparel products. The assortment will include brands such as Bare Minerals, Calvin Klein, Polo Ralph Lauren, Adidas and Ray Ban. This is Boxed’s first foray into apparel and cosmetics.

Gindi, EVP of New York-based Century 21 Stores  stated "Century 21 Stores is thrilled to partner with Boxed to bring our incredible designer brands at amazing prices to their audience who love online shopping convenience and value quality goods above all else," said Isaac. "It's exciting to provide a new way to shop a range of Century 21 products for our loyal customers alongside their day-to-day items that they know and love on Boxed."

The team at Foodservice Solutions® believes that Boxed is positioned to focus om meals and meal kit solutions given that Boxed revealed in July that it had hired former Amazon executive Prentis Wilson, who led Amazon Business’ growth to $10 billion in annual sales volume, as Boxed's first president. Stay tuned!

For international corporate 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 www.GrocerantGuru.com , www.FoodserviceSolutions.us or call 1-253-759-7869