SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -- While foodservice at retail encompasses a broad swath of operators -- from convenience stores and supermarkets to hospitals and universities -- it's surprisingly easy to find agreement on some of the biggest trends shaping the category today. At a panel on the final day of the 2012 Foodservice At Retail Exchange (FARE), three operators provided complementary perspectives on four evolutions under way in their customers and food itself.
For example, take the "day-part tango" that has consumers snacking more often and eating items originating during different day-parts at different parts of the day.
According to data from The NPD Group, there was a 13% increase in meals that included breakfast items in c-stores, and a 19% jump in snack foods' share of prepared-food sales at grocery stores. Also consider that many retailers now offer all-day breakfast.
"Our volume is so large, we struggle with normal day-parts," said Angelo Mojica, director of food and nutrition services for UNC Hospitals, Chapel Hill, N.C. He has seen many customers arrive for lunch at 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m., trying to beat the noon rush. The hospital has also begun offering "Black Hat Chef Meals" between 2 and 4 p.m., special menu items designed to shift customers to a different, less popular day-part.
At Los Angeles-based University of Southern California (USC), alerts on Twitter and Facebook draw students into the dining halls and campus restaurants for before- and after-lunch specials, said Kris Klinger, director of hospitality. USC offers all-day breakfast at some venues -- a practice also followed by Quick Chek Corp., Whitehouse Station, N.J. As director of foodservice Jennifer Vespole pointed out, while the audience is small -- 85% of customers still buy breakfast items between 8 and 11 a.m .-- "you may get someone looking for something less expensive," such as a breakfast sandwich, in the afternoon.
Another area of sales crossover is competition. According to a survey by Packaged Facts, consumers bought prepared food items at both c-stores and supermarkets an average of 5.7 times each month. When c-store customers were asked where they would buy prepared food if they couldn't get it in a convenience store, 38% said supermarkets would be the top choice. Conversely, only 8% of supermarket fans chose c-stores as their next-best option. Also consider the home fridge a competitor; with recessionary pressures, many consumers are brown-bagging lunches.
Vespole said Quick Chek has been fortunate in that its traffic has remained stable throughout the recession; she credits the value appeal of its proprietary foodservice program to its large base of labor-class and blue-collar customers. At the same time, high-quality ingredients draw mobile professionals.
Mojica said brown-bagging and operations run by foodservice provider Aramark are his food venues' biggest competition. The hospital-run restaurants have had some success offering employees a 20% discount on food purchases, and with different specials to showcase the variety available. At USC, foodservice operators try to keep students engaged and eating on campus with interruption points: carts placed strategically throughout the campus, such as a "breakfast bike cart" that offers cereal, to stop busy students on their way to and from class.
Speaking of mobile food, the proliferation of food trucks speaks to the democratization of great cuisine. The rise of foodie culture was another trend that all of the operators have in their sights. Quick Chek offers sauces with high flavor profiles for its made-to-order sandwiches, and has eschewed the roller grill for a gourmet, made-to-order hot dog program heated up in a TurboChef oven to attract customers with discriminating tastes.
UNC Hospitals sells a range of food options to meet its large gamut of customer types: from a humble rice and bean bowl to a burrito bowl, from mac and cheese to ribeye steak. USC also offers "lowbrow" comfort food such as tater tots, but has experimented with authentic takes on ethnic cuisines -- think noodle bowls instead of fried rice.
Beyond the food, there's no denying the effect of experiential elements on the ultimate quality of the foodservice experience.
"The facility speaks volumes," said Vespole. Quick Chek relaunched its store brand five years ago to emphasize its fresh convenience offer, she said; included in this offer is the employee's performance. "The buck stops with execution and how the store team delivers."
"It begins and ends in the HR piece," agreed Klinger, who said USC focuses not only on hiring the right people for the job, but also sharing goals with employees. And at UNC Hospitals, foodservice employees are rewarded with unique gifts when the restaurants meet their goals, including everything from a steak dinner to the opportunity to throw a pie at their manager's face.
FARE 2013 will be held June 18-20 at the Renaissance Schaumburg. Stay tuned to www.foodserviceatretail.com for details.
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