CHICAGO -- The bakery-cafe segment, which accounts for $5 billion in annual sales and more than 3,600 units nationwide, has been able to successfully navigate the middle ground between quick- and-full service restaurants. It’s outpaced industry sales and unit growth for each of the past three years. Total bakery-cafe units increased 4.2%, and bakery-cafe sales increased 12% during those three years.
A new study by Technomic finds consumers fueling growth in this fast-casual subsegment by visiting bakery-cafes in larger numbers and by becoming frequent customers once they do visit. Seventy-one percent of consumers have now visited a bakery-cafe, up from 43% in 2008, and nearly three quarters of those consumers say they visit bakery-cafe concepts at least once a month.
“Bakery-cafe chains continue gaining market share in a zero-growth environment,” says Darren Tristano, executive vice president of Technomic. “More consumers are visiting these restaurants and are gaining familiarity, but nearly one in three consumers surveyed still haven't been to a bakery-cafe concept. Their most common reasons have to do with location and unfamiliarity. As more units open and as marketing efforts continue to boost awareness, there is little reason to think the segment will not continue to perform well.”
Further findings from the report include:
- There’s room for more variety on bakery-cafe breakfast menus. A third of consumers (34%) strongly agree that they would visit bakery-cafes more often for breakfast if their menus offered a wider variety of breakfast items.
- The service element seems to be particularly important to users of bakery-cafes. Three in four consumers (75%) report that the quality of service is very important when deciding which bakery-cafe to visit, and about two-thirds (66%) consider the speed of service to be very important.
- Wraps and sandwiches featuring artisanal breads are a primary focus of bakery-cafe's menu positioning. A look at the most prevalent bread types for lunch and dinner sandwiches shows tortillas as the most-frequently mentioned sandwich bread, at 11.7%. Focaccia, positioned as a European-style artisan bread variety, ranks second (9.1%). Ciabatta, sourdough and pumpernickel have all increased significantly on bakery-cafe menus since 2008.
- Panera Bread is the clear leader in the segment and has further strengthened its position in the arena over the past few years. About seven in 10 consumers polled (69%) visit and purchase food from the chain at least occasionally, and among Panera's visitors, 69% go at least monthly.
The 2011 Bakery-Cafe Consumer Trend Report examines bakery café purchasing behavior, attitudes and preferences of more than 1,500 consumers. To learn more about this report, visit www.technomic.com.
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