Restaurant advertising spending vs. valid positioning.



I was reminded over the weekend during the Wisconsin, Ohio State football game by one the nations largest pizza manufactures sales of both frozen and fresh prepared pizza are booming in non-traditional channels. That restaurants brands and or product positioning for restaurants is more important than a temporary increase in product or brand advertising.

Repeatedly we have seen company after company in the restaurant sector lower prices and advertise the Hell out of lower prices; garnering a short term reversal of sales trends. Then telling shareholders we are on the right track, justifying the ad spend and while crediting pseudo tweaks in new product or service changes. When in fact nothing but dollars spent on advertising really went up and sales were only slightly better than prior year.

Industry professionals understand that the consumer is dynamic not static. Lowering the price while cost are shrinking is fine. However now that commodity prices are back on the rise the short term gain may become a liability. The companies that raise prices first will lose market share to those in a better position too maintain pricing ala the multi-nationals.

Daniel Smith in his article The Ultimate Food Fight addressed many of these issues. More importantly he pointed out that restaurants are losing market share to grocery stores and convenience stores that have research the customer and repositioned. Smith noted that “The grocery store is now almost accounting for half of all pizza consumption.” Here is a link to that article:

www.qsrmagazine.com/articles/features/146/grocery-1.phtml

Developing strategy that integrates both the brand and new products while repositioning too be top of mind in consumer relevance requires more than shotgun tactics. There is a reason Grocery stores, Drug stores Dollar stores and C-stores are entering the ready-to-eat ready-to-heat prepared food grocerant niche. Restaurateurs have opened the door.

Outside eyes can deliver top line sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions® to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions® visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or twitter.com/grocerant

Private Label brand managers vs. shelf space managers.



What is the role of the legacy national brand manager in a world where private label is branded? National brand manufactures all of whom are highly valued continue paying slotting fee’s to grocery stores and supermarkets as the easiest way to reach the consumer.

Companies the ilk of A & P that rely on slotting fees are fading away faster than the fees themselves. The ready-to-eat ready-to-heat retail food price + value + service equilibrium continues resetting driven in large part by private label brand mangers focused on the customer not the shelf.

The brand managers of the private label products have are utilizing a tool out of the National Brand Managers playbook to build loyalty, reinforce value and generate additional sales and profits for the store and their particular private label product. They are taking the end caps for themselves!

Price Chopper is utilizing what they call “power displays”. Wal-Mart is utilizing the end caps to reinforce value of their private label products and consumer is picking them up! Wegmans gets the customers coming and going utilizing the vestibules with the likes of Wegmans private label potato chips and the next week Wegmans own canned tuna and their own mayo for example.

Deep in the store the private label battle continues with ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat portable food. All prepared fresh and in most cases right in front of the customer. Private Label Grocerant ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat food now has brand managers of there own and they are building sales not slotting fees.

Outside eyes can deliver top sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions® to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions® visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or twitter.com/grocerant

6 compelling reasons consumers buy ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat prepared food.



Consumer exposure to multi ethnic and multi cultural foods has not only created an ongoing search for the next new flavor or “hot” food entrée. It has left a void in the home meal cooking skill set. Many consumers simply don’t have the skills or spices on the shelf to prepared a favorite meal. When the consumer is shopping for ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat prepared food, here are five top reasons to pick your products.

1. Visceral presentation based on how it looks and is presented.

2. Bundling, the ability to build your meal with components you want.

3. Individualized portions, power to select quality and quantity of items viewed.

4. Convenience, unit /store location on the drive home from work, it’s fast & easy.

5. Price, ability to evaluate price vs. cost at restaurant with tip, and vs. time to cook from scratch.

  6.Branded Flavor, differentiation in flavor drives choice. Example Wienerschnitzel Chili sauce.

Consistently delivering customized individualization with better for you food will drive top line sales. Incorporating Foodservice Solutions® 5 P’s of food marketing: Product, Packaging, Placement, Portability and Price will ensure your continued success.

Outside eyes can deliver top sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions® to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions® visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or twitter.com/grocerant

Convenience stores are riding a wave of success with grocerant food driving sales.



Most industry observers were not surprised to learn from The NPD Group that convenience store traffic was up by 8 percent, and sales increased 11 percent in the quarter ending June 2010 compared to the same quarter a year ago.

What I was surprised to hear since that report came out was questions from operators how are they doing that while the economy continues to flounder and unemployment remains high? The answer is simple: FOOD, FOOD, FOOD fresh prepared ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat grocerant food.

Companies like QuickChek, Sheetz, Wawa, and 7 Eleven all have been utilizing customer research and testing new food products and the customers have responded in a positive way. Ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat fresh prepared food has been driving customer loyalty, frequency, top line sales and bottom line profits for these sector leading companies.

Many of the successful convenience store operators are now adopting Foodservice Solutions® 5 P’s of retail food marketing: Product, Packaging, Placement, Portability and Price. Are your sales up 11%?

Outside eyes can deliver top sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or on Facebook at Steven Johnson

Brazil is The Next Big Thing for Food Service.



Today I have a guest Blog:  International contribution by Alexandre Silva 12 de outubro de 2010

Ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat prepared food ala the grocerant niche is growing around the world. Steven Johnson the Grocerant Guru at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® is well know in Brazil and around the world. Everybody in the world knows the acronym BRIC, it is the first letter of the countries which are growing rapidly. I am talking about: Brazil, Russia, India and China.

I would say that Brazil is the next big thing. It is considered one of the big global retail food players at the moment. Brazil will be host of two big sportive events in next 6 yeas: World Cup in 2014 and Olympics in 2016.

We already can feel reflex of these events in several channels of Food Service market, first of these channels is calling my attention is QSR and the second is grocerant niche.

If we take a look to some weeks ago we can see kind of example I am talking about, do you remember about the sale of Burger King by 3G Capital,yes a Brazilian HQ firm. This is just a little piece of what I am talking about. Brazil is well capitalized and consumer are ready for additional branded food products.

We distribute currently to various QSR customers, and all of them tell us that they will grow too much in these next years. (Growing at exponential rates, that are unheard of in other parts of the world)

What about some QSR chains that still are not in Brazil? Are they coming? I think Taco Bell would be received well here. There is plenty of room for additional chicken, burger, pizza and Mexican concepts from around the world and USA in Brazil.

It is clear that Brazil offers a good opportunity to Food Service market, and QSR is giving signals that will take advantage of this. If your looking for new opportunity, Brazil may be for you.

Other food retailers including Wal-Mart see opportunity in Brazil. Brazil embraces US concepts and I hope many of you will embrace Brazil.

For more from Alexandre visit: http://alexandre-silva.com/

The Grocerant niche continues to boom around the world.  Is your company growing at break neck speed? Outside eyes can deliver top sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or on Facebook at Steven Johnson

Restaurant menu success via Tweens that love Hand held foods!



The writers of “iCarly” the hit Nickelodeon series have created what could be one is a series of new menu items successes. Spaghetti tacos! Helene Stapinski has written about the hottest food craze for kids. Below is in brief what Helene wrote:

“It started as a gag: spaghetti tacos. On an episode of the hit Nickelodeon series “iCarly,” the lead character’s eccentric older brother, Spencer, makes dinner one night. Glimpsed on screen, the dish consists of red-sauce-coated pasta stuffed into hard taco shells. What could be more unappealing?

When Julian Stuart-Burns, 8, asked his mother to make the tacos one night, she simply laughed. “I thought he was joking,” said Jennifer Burns, a Brooklyn mother of three. “But then he kept asking.” Ms. Burns finally gave in — like thousands of other moms — and cooked up the punch line for Julian’s birthday party.

That punch line has now become part of American children’s cuisine, fostering a legion of imitators and improvisers across the country. Spurred on by reruns, Internet traffic, slumber parties and simple old-fashioned word of mouth among children, spaghetti tacos are all the rage. Especially if you’re less than 5 feet tall and live with your mother.

Ed Dzitko, a dad from Woodbury, Conn., uses oversize taco shells to fit in more spaghetti. Cheryl Trombetta, a grandmother from Secaucus, N.J., makes them whenever her 5-year-old grandson asks. A woman in Lincoln, Neb., posted a meat-sauce version on Food.com in the winter, crediting her 7-year-old son with the idea. And Karen Petersen, a mother of two from Rye, N.H., fries her own taco shells and breaks the spaghetti into thirds to make the strands fit more easily.

“Clearly, it’s spread like a virus,” said Ms. Petersen, a self-described “foodie,” who said that she has made them several times for her 11-year-old daughter, Amelia.

After seeing them on the show, Amelia was served the tacos at a friend’s slumber party this year and then begged her mom to make them.

“The mixture of spaghetti and tacos is odd,” Amelia admitted. “But it’s actually pretty good. They’re one of my favorite foods. I guess kids like making them because they think it’s cool to be like the people from ‘iCarly.’ ”…

“Spaghetti tacos has made it possible to eat spaghetti in your car,” he said. “It’s a very important technological development. You don’t even need a plate.”

Join me here on my blog for insights, information and inspiration. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions® visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant.

Understanding retail foodservice grocerant development.



Steven Johnson of Tacoma, Washington based Foodservice Solutions shares some of the articles published. When success leaves clues Steve Johnson has been picking them up and sharing within the industry since 1991.

Restaurant Consumer Discontinuity

http://www.foodservice.com/articles/show.cfm?contentid=4112

Foodservice visceral attractiveness equals contemporary consumer relevance.

http://www.foodservice.com/blogs/show.cfm?contentid=5248

Pop-up restaurants can create quite a buzz!

http://www.foodservice.com/blogs/show.cfm?contentid=4736

Private Label Brand Managers Making Brands of Private Label Products.

http://www.foodservice.com/blogs/show.cfm?contentid=4620

Outside eyes can deliver top sales and bottom line profits. Invite Foodservice Solutions to provide brand and product positioning assistance or a grocerant program assessment. Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche for more on Steven A. Johnson and Foodservice Solutions visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/grocerant or on Facebook at Steven Johnson