McDonald's Success Clues Equal Customer Relevance

Success does leave clues and according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson McDonald’s understands that grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food complemented with Ready-2-Drink beverages will edify significantly edify the brand with consumers  all while expanding the brands value as regular reader of this blog know. 

Expanding the brands reach, relevance, while refreshing it’s look is the kind of restaurant industry leadership that was need to stop the customer count migration from restaurants to other non-traditional fresh food retailers according to our won Grocerant Guru®.

Restaurant brands increasingly need to build lasting partnership to drive top line sales and bottom line profits according to Johnson.  In a battle for Share of Stomach branded retailers must have a presents where the consumers shop when they are thirsty or hungry. 

So, when McDonald’s announced that they will be selling bottled, ready-to-drink McCafé Frappé beverages at supermarkets and other retail locations starting early 2018 no one our office was surprised. O’ and did we say that it was a partnership with The Coca-Cola Company?  Regular readers once again we well informed.

Chris Kempczinski, president, McDonald’s stated “We understand how important the coffee culture is for consumers and we are committed to meeting that demand at the taste, convenience and value only McDonald’s can offer. This is a central part of our growth strategy and we can’t wait to share what’s next.”

The question is what is your brand doing?  Need new ideations?  Here is what McDonalds is doing:

Caramel Macchiato: Rich, dark-roast espresso served with whole or nonfat milk, mixed with sweet caramel syrup, and topped with ribbons of buttery caramel drizzle. Available hot or iced.

Cappuccino: A warm, comforting coffee drink made with whole or nonfat steamed milk, bold espresso made from sustainably sourced beans, fluffy foam, and the choice of French Vanilla, caramel or hazelnut flavor.

Americano: Freshly brewed with dark, rich espresso for a strong, bold flavor.

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

Foodservice Pantry vs Grocerant Fresh where are you Selling Food?

The unspoken secret that most retail foodservice companies did not speak about was the fact that close to 78% of Whole Foods sales were driven by grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.

Nationally the percent of grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food still hovers around 22% just about all grocery stores are doing all they can to drive that number up according to our won Grocerant Guru®.  However do they have the insights, ability, and even more important the desire to evolve beyond selling to yesterday’s pantry consumers and begging selling to tomorrow’s fresh food consumers?

Regular readers of this blog know that the retail landscape is evolving faster than many retailers.  Now the question is: who will be selling your products in the future and what products will drive branded customer adoption?

Do you still think that selling to Wal-Mart, Kroger, and Albertsons is the best path to purchase?  It just might be time to re-evaluate your distribution channels with a new sense of urgency. So, just where could a legacy bakery, legacy branded food CPG manufacture, or private label food manufacture be looking for a new avenue of distribution?

First don’t abandon the grocery store just yet.  The team at Foodservice Solutions® have helped many legacy brands find new avenues of distribution. So if you do not have viable ideation or well-developed selling programs for the new non-traditional alternative channels it just might be time to give our Grocerant Guru® a call at: 253-759-7869. 

We are not talking about direct to consumer internet sales as is closer to yesterday sales ideation than today’s opportunity.  Meal Kits are still in the middle of the road, a solution for today, a substitute, but not a long term viable avenue of growth for most established brands.

If you think slotting fees will continue to drive your growth, drive customers into your stores, or solve your problems the simple fact is they are not customer focused and will not solve anything other than to drive units numbers for the manufactures tout to Wall Street. So, do you want to drive top line sales? 

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

Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice a Global Success

If success does leave clues and it does according to Tacoma WA, based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice is a success story you should take time to learn more about.

Yang’s is ready to expand its footprint into the U.S. and that is a big move for a chain with  more than 6,000 locations across China, Australia, Japan and Singapore.  Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice is customer focused full flavored fast food.  Next week Yang’s will open its first U.S. restaurant in Tustin, California, on September 10, 2017.

If you are looking for authentic, simple Chinese home-style cooking Xiao Lu Yang founder says “What makes us different is that we celebrate one delicious dish that has a rich tradition in Chinese culture: Huang Men braised chicken,” .   Remember that Xiao Lu Yang opened the first Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice in 2011 to-date they have opened 6,000 units and will open there first unit in the U.S. on September 10^th. “

Yang continued “This dish, a staple of the well-known Shangdong-style, Lu Cai cuisine, is fairly complex and requires a commitment to flavor and ingredients, which we ensure through making sure the sauce is consistent across all our locations. We’re ready to bring Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice to Tustin, and eventually across the entire state of California and beyond.”

The acclaimed restaurant’s single menu item got its start when Yang’s grandmother acquired the secret recipe for the sauce and began serving it at the family’s many well-known independent restaurants. With years of culinary training under his belt, Yang began lovingly adapting the sauce of the braised chicken recipe and added rice before launching it at his fast casual restaurants in 2011.

“Our restaurants are focused on providing customers with an easy, delicious experience, and that starts with our signature braised chicken rice dish,” says Yang. “We aspire to be the dish of choice for the young at heart and the young of age. With our home-cooked, taste-of-childhood flavors, we hope to transport our guests to their family dinner table.” according to Yang.

Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice is dedicated to ensuring the quality of its signature dish starting with the consistent flavor of the sauce and simplifying the dining experience for customers. The dish is a treasured memory of Yang’s own childhood, and he aims to help more families and children experience these special flavors and create their own cherished moments together enjoying the comforting, home-style meal.

While the majority of locations in China are owned by multi-unit franchisees, the Tustin restaurant will be owned and operated by the corporate team. The brand aims to start signing deals with qualified franchisees to bring the brand to targeted markets such as throughout California, New York, Chicago and San Francisco.

At 1,500 square feet, the Tustin restaurant has enough seating for 40 and will feature both dine-in and carryout. The location will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Success does leave clues and the team at Foodservice Solutions® believes that Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice will become a success clue.

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

QuickChek Convenience is Continually Evolving

How do companies succeed?  They evolve over time and QuickChek Corp. is one of the companies that is not only celebrating 50 years in the convenience channel, but it is also marking its 150th store with a new design focusing on fresh and Grocerant niche fresh food according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.

According to QuickChek CEO Dean Durling, the latest prototype will help “redefine convenience” for the chain so that it looks more like tomorrow than yesterday convenience store experience. Durling and his team understand that the consumer is dynamic not static and he aims to insure his retail stores are as well.

Durling pointed out that some of the new elements in store include cellphone and laptop charging stations in the indoor seating area and a fresh soup bar with six varieties of "gourmet soups with clean ingredients" that is unique to the Monroe store.  

Yes not to worry the new store is filled with Grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food options including an espresso and smoothie bar for specialty drinks, made-for-you sandwiches and salads with touchscreen ordering, no-fee ATMs, Wi-Fi.  

The new store has only 5,496-square-foot all focused on the dining habits of today's millennial consumer — including the charging stations in a nod to millennials' love of technology and a menu of fresh items with "healthier" and "clean" ingredients.

Durling told the news outlet continued "Our new design focuses on fresh and particularly fresh food,". "Millennials love QuickChek and we want to continue to market toward millennials...So, I think if you build a store that satisfies millennials today, it's aspirational for all of us. The store markets and merchandises to everyone. That is who we are and where we are heading," Where are you heading?

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. 

Amazon Branded Private Label Meal Kits

You knew that when Amazon rolled out  Martha Stewart Meal Kits that a brand name with 95% brand name  recognition. That the day would come that Amazon would expand its grocerant niche fresh prepared meal solutions.   Regular readers of this blog know we touted the launch of the meal kit business.  With Whole Foods acquisition Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson believes both Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food will play a greater role at Amazon.

When Amazon teamed up with Martha Stewart to sell meal kits no one should have been surprised. Introducing fine fast food or Martha’s Meal Kits, Amazon is edifying its own halo of ‘better-for-you’ fine fresh fast food. Once again legacy grocery stores are taking a wait and see approach to meal kits.

Today most grocery stores, offer meal kit services  that look more like yesterday than tomorrow despite their adoption by millennials as ‘training wheels’ for cooking a ‘perfect or special occasion meal at home according to Steven Johnson www.FoodserviceSolutions.us Grocerant Guru®

Martha Stewart meal kits were a learning platform for Amazon Prime members through “AmazonFresh they included some of Stewart's favorite recipes broken down into six steps with pre-portioned seasonal ingredients to cook a meal for two.  Amazon customers don't have to commit to a certain number of meals or order a week in advance, which is what most of the meal kit subscription services require.”

Packaged Facts estimates meal kit services generated $1.5 billion in sales last year not having to sign up for an ongoing subscription and the one hour delivery time offered by Amazon in most major cities this could become a coup for both AmazonFresh, Martha Stewart and as they expand options for consumers.

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. 

Franchisee with a Focus Pret A Manger

This week Pret A Manger announced that it has signed its first franchise agreement in the U.S. the company will focus on college campus locations via franchises. Pret A Manager will open two university locations this fall the first will be Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania the second will be at the University of Chicago.  The team at Foodservice Solutions® believes that targeted growth Gen Z & Millennials will complement Pret A Manager’s brand value.

The new franchisee is Bon Appétit Management Company,  on-site restaurant company operating more than 1,000 cafes in 33 states for corporations, universities and museums, as well as public restaurants seems to be a perfect fit for Pret A Manger according to our own Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.

The campus locations will offer Pret’s popular menu of organic coffee and handmade natural food, including sandwiches, salads, wraps, baguettes, and hot options. Using quality, ethically sourced ingredients, all of Pret’s grocerant niche fresh items are prepared on-site in the shop kitchens every day.

The menu includes items the ilk of:  Balsamic Chicken & Avocado Sandwich, Mediterranean Mezze Salad, Coconut Chicken & Miso Sweet Potato Balance Box, and Turkey, Ham & Wisconsin Cheddar Hot Baguette  which elevate flavor while satisfying Millennials quest for food discovery.

Jo Brett, Pret’s U.S. president  stated “Choosing the right partners is important for Pret and we really admire Bon Appetit’s values and operational strengths,”,,. “Our menu of freshly made food to go is perfect for students juggling a busy academic lifestyle, and I’m sure our organic coffee will also be very popular on campus. Pret is a natural choice for students looking for fresh and nutritious food and we hope that these three new university shops are the first of many.”

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

Packaging Meal Components for a Family Dinner

Grocerant niche mix and match meal component bundling is now the cornerstone of retail foodservice success.  Mix & Match bundling continues to drive customer migration from legacy CPG products, restaurants, and grocery stores to new fresh food products and new avenues of fresh food distribution according to Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.

Today "the new normal" in food retail requires a shift away from traditional food packaging, points of distribution, and a focus on fresh prepared food rather that pantry stocking according to Johnson. Meal components that focus on healthier choices are an invitation Millennials cannot seem to pass up. .

The team at Foodservice Solutions® identified, quantified, and qualified the vital role of portability as a major driver of the growth of the grocerant niche and subsequently Technomic revalidated our findings.   of the snacking trend, obvious not only at the drive-thru window, but also with packaged offerings at convenience stores like 7-Eleven, and at "boutique" establishments, like Starbucks.

Increasingly traditional mealtimes are less important than the convenience of fresh prepared meal components that can be consumer as immediate consumption, used later as a mix and match meal components for the perfect family meal, cocktail compliment, or meal replacement as a small meal. 

As traditional eating patterns evolve, new Non-traditional "dayparts" are emerging.  This is creating quite a conundrum legacy retailers in both the restaurant sector focused on selling complete meals and legacy grocery stores focused on collecting slotting fees rather than providing consumers incremental fresh food options.

In a new research by InfoScout looked at 77,820 American households who provided daily receipts to the company to determine which off-hour consumers are most apt to head to a restaurant in those times, as well as the overall percentage of visits made by consumers during off-hour dayparts and the basket size during those visits and how that compares with the basket size of traditional mealtimes finding “off-hour meals make up 35 to 48 percent of all trips”.

Food retail has become a battle for share of stomach. The battle for that share of stomach is taking is between all retailers sell food including the ilk of: Convenience Stores, Supermarkets, Dollar stores, Drug stores, Ikea, Liquor stores to name but a few.

In research from CocaCola they found that Millennials average 4.2 meals a day. Clearly Millennials are evolving as food consumers here are some additional facts from the Coca Cola survey: 

1. More than half eat breakfast outside of morning hours. 

2.  30 percent replace one or two meals daily with snacks. 

3. 35 percent eat dinner at restaurants offering "happy hour" deals.

4. 43 percent say they snack more today. 

5. Members of the 18-to-24 age group reported they would go to restaurants more if they stayed open later.

Packaging fresh food meal components and placing those components in avenues of distribution that are representative of the products target market is more important now than ever according to the team at Foodservice Solutions®.    Can your meals be turned into meal components?  Success does leave clues.

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.