10 Essential Guidelines for Winning in Foodservice Today

 

Manifesto for Visionary Brands

1. Be a Leader, Not Just a Manager

In today’s foodservice landscape—where technology, consumer preferences, and sustainability pressures are constantly shifting—leadership isn’t optional; it’s the engine that drives growth. Example: Brands like Sweetgreen and Chipotle thrive because leadership pushes bold concepts—digital-first ordering, supply chain transparency, sustainable sourcing—while empowering their teams to innovate.

2. Know What’s Under Your Umbrella

Clearly define the business you’re in—not just the food you serve, but the problems you solve. Example: Starbucks isn’t just in the “coffee” business; it’s in the “third place” business—offering comfort, connection, and consistency.

3. Get and Stay Close to Your Customer

Your guests’ expectations evolve fast. Use data, not guesswork, to understand them. Example: Domino’s “Pizza Tracker” created transparency and strengthened customer connection.

4. Know Your Playing Field

Understand market forces, from ingredient costs to tech trends. Example: Burger King’s early adoption of plant-based offerings gave it a competitive edge.

5. Know Your Real Rivals

Competition is everywhere—meal kits, grocery hot bars, delivery apps. Example: 7-Eleven’s fresh, chef-inspired meals challenge QSRs at lunch.

6. Use the Element of Surprise

Break out of the box and create buzz. Example: Taco Bell’s Mexican Pizza comeback was a masterclass in hype and timing.

7. Focus, Focus, Focus

Avoid distractions that dilute your identity. Example: In-N-Out’s tight menu keeps quality high and loyalty fierce.

8. Concentrate Your Resources

Invest in initiatives with the biggest impact. Example: McDonald’s digital platform drove record engagement.

9. Stay Mobile and Agile

Adapt quickly to shifting habits. Example: Restaurants that pivoted to family meal kits in 2020 often survived or grew.

10. Advance and Secure

Play offense, not just defense. Example: Shake Shack’s deliberate drive-thru rollout ensured quality and brand integrity.

“Things do not change; we change.” – Henry David Thoreau

In foodservice, success is never an accident—it’s the product of foresight, disciplined execution, and a willingness to evolve.

Walmart’s Branded Restaurant Meals

 

There is no doubt that Walmart knows what customers want for dinner.  Where Walmart has stumbled was trying to sell consumers for dinner what they bought 25 years ago, the same brands, but in a smaller packaging size for more money according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

At the intersection food customer migration and what’s for dinner Walmart is experimenting with ways to give consumers what they want.  That’s is to say, grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared meals and meal components according to Johnson. 

Ghost Kitchen Brands has planted its flag in the U.S. partnering with Walmart. So, the Canadian provider of off-premise-only kitchen spaces recently opened its first domestic location, inside a Walmart in Rochester, N.Y. Ghost Kitchens has a deal with the retail giant to open at least 30 such outlets here over the next two years. Why a virtual kitchen in a Walmart? Insights from the team at Foodservice Solutions® found:

 

1.       Recent Grocerant ScoreCards found 82.3% of consumers don’t know what’s for dinner at Noon, and 61.1 don’t know what’ s for dinner at 4PM %.

2.       83.1% all dinners have at least 1 grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat meal component and 68.4% have two meal components.

3.       When asked if they wanted to cook dinner from scratch or assemble dinner from fresh meal components 90.4 % of Gen Z chose assemble from Fresh Prepared Meal Components and Millennials 82.7% chose meal components.

4.       Seventy-three percent of retail prepared food purchases are taken to go

5.       Prepared food purchases are frequently a planned purchase among 59% of shoppers, while 41% of shoppers said they buy prepared foods on impulse. Dinner has the highest amount of prepared food buys with 79% of respondents making purchases for that meal, while lunch comes in at 77% and breakfast at 62%.

6.       55% of consumers would like to try autonomous EV delivery

In A Battle for Share of Stomach

Get this, Walmart’s Rochester location features 25 brands that include restaurants like Quiznos and Saladworks along with packaged products like Red Bull and Kraft Mac & Cheese. Customers can order a combination of items for delivery or pickup while they shop, either via mobile app or on-site kiosks.

Adding relevance for Gen Z and Millennials customers can order from kiosks or via mobile app for pickup or delivery. Here is how it works; Ghost Kitchens operates all of its locations via licensing deals with the brands. Each kitchen staffs about two or three employees who are cross-trained on the various concepts

Ghost Kitchens focus in on templated uncomplicated brands the ilk of Quiznos and Saladworks, and it sister concept, Frutta Bowls, fit that bill. Other options, include the ilk of Nathan's Famous, Wow Bao and Dickey's Barbecue Pit, have also made ghost kitchens and licensing deals part of their growth strategies.

Ghost Kitchens employees are cross-trained on all 25 concepts at the location. So, other brands on the Rochester roster are Cinnabon, Cheesecake Factory's bakery concept and Shaquille O'Neal's Big Chicken, which is making its East Coast debut. 

The selection of brand also includes a handful of international concepts. Canadian chains BeaverTails and Yogen Fuz are in the mix, as is U.K.-based Costa Coffee, owned by Coca-Cola.

Currently, Ghost Kitchens hopes to have 800 locations in the U.S., with Illinois, Texas, Georgia and California next in line. It is targeting nontraditional, high-traffic sites in retailers and malls, as well as stand-alone stores. In some of its Walmart locations, it is taking the place of McDonald's found in many Walmart’s.  How are you giving customers what they want for less?

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