In less than a minute, discover the industry’s most influential factors and examples of restaurants that are really hitting the mark when it comes to these foodservice mega trends.
When it comes to the eating out market there is a huge amount of research around consumer drivers and what motivates different demographics. Every aspect is analysed, from pre-visit online research, to the impact of special diets and the type of cuisine and format consumers are looking for.
Although conferences, seminars, briefings and alike are all crucial to help keep us up to date with the latest in the food and drink market – be it foodservice, convenience or retail – as with many things, you can’t beat some real life experience. Often in the world of foodservice marketing we can become obsessed with trends and statistics, but we really need to be out there living and breathing the market to properly understand some of the dynamics and trends at play.
According to newspaper reports Sainsbury’s has entered into exclusive discussions with Nisa about a potential acquisition of the retail business for a reported £130m.
Approximately one third of children in the UK are now classified as overweight and the government are working hard to reduce this in order to save lives and prevent health conditions later in life. Plans set out over the next ten years include clearer food labelling, a soft drinks industry levy, reducing sugar by 20% in products and improving physical activity programmes in schools. Our very own Neil Brenson recently blogged on the Public Health England guidelines around this sugar reduction plan, read it here.
Shopper marketing and shopper loyalty in convenience can sometimes be unnecessarily over-complicated and over-thought. That’s the positive conclusion I came to after attending the him! Convenience Tracker Programme (CTP) Unveil event. The headline findings show it’s all pretty simple stuff as to why convenience shoppers shop and what needs to be done to keep them coming back and spending more.
This year the Arena summer event headlined Mark Fox, CEO of Bill’s Restaurants, along with a panel discussion around the importance of the supplier/operator relationship, chaired by Peter Martin VP of CGA. As a leading food and drink agency we were of course in attendance at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower to hear what everyone had to say. The panel discussion featured representatives from operator-side M&B and Gaucho, and supplier-side Reynolds and Brakes. M&B cited the challenge of Brexit as a key issue for the business having put a £12m hole in their forecasts back on June 24th when the referendum result was announced. Of course operators are keen to get the best commercials out of suppliers, but they also appreciate that if they want good reliable suppliers that the relationship needs to be a sustainable one, whether that is guaranteeing volumes or other reassurances of commitment. The frustration of suppliers coming to operators with ‘solutions in search of a problem’ was highlighted by Chris Hopkins of M&B who urged suppliers to focus on the right innovation, i.e. innovation that shows how they can meet the needs of their customers better than they do currently. This of course requires suppliers to understand the customer mind-set and need states, so with this in mind it would serve suppliers well to do research to identify issues or opportunities to focus their innovation (something Jellybean can of course help with! – plug over).
At the annual Association of Convenience Stores Summit we heard from a host of speakers about their perspectives on the convenience market. One key recurring theme throughout the event was food-to-go, which is perhaps unsurprising given a third of delegates in the room said it was the no.1 priority focus for their business. So with the IGD predicting that food-to-go will be worth over £21bn by 2021, here are seven key take-outs. Neil Brenson of leading food and drink agency Jellybean reports.
The annual National Convenience Show and Farm Shop and Deli Show have just taken place at the NEC in Birmingham. Around 600 food and drink brands across a huge variety of different categories were there in all their glory, trying to capture the attention of what was a record attendance of retailers and operators this year. As you’d expect from a leading integrated agency that specialises in all things food and drink, we were there taking in everything that these great shows have to offer.
As the leading foodservice agency we make it our business to stay abreast of the latest trends and developments in the eating out market. To that end we always make sure we attend the MCA forum debriefs to get the latest market insight. This week we joined the great and the good of the world of operators and manufacturers to hear the latest news on market dynamics, menu trends and consumer demand in the eating out market. As ever there was a huge amount of great information, but here are our top ten take outs…
Food is an incredibly important part of Easter traditions for families up and down the country and as a nation we spend millions of pounds on food at Easter every year. This is something that hasn’t escaped the attention of the supermarkets and out of home operators who continue to pull out all the stops to cash in. It’s a real battleground. Whether it’s hot cross buns for Good Friday, Easter eggs for gifting, a pub lunch, an evening meal out, or the traditional Lamb and trimmings to cook at home for the family – our nation’s appetite for food continues to grow.
The food industry has just been served with a healthy spoonful of bitter sweet sugar guidance from Public Health England. The new voluntary guidelines will limit the amount of sugar found in products across nine food groups. If you work in food and think this doesn’t apply to you then think again. It’s going to impact on all corners of our industry, from retailers to manufacturers, QSR’s to coffee shops. The word is, if food companies don’t follow the advice, then it could signal full-on regulation in the future and you know what that means…. sugar tax! Yes, just like we’re about to see introduced on soft drinks. So, it’s time to take action on sugar.
The annual Arena Savoy Lecture is the jewel in the crown of the Arena foodservice networking calendar, with the great and the good of the industry in attendance. This year the line-up included the traditional key note speech, as well as a panel debate on the hot topic of Brexit, entitled Challenges and Opportunities. With representatives from finance – Bob Silk from Barclays Hospitality and Leisure team, law – Sebastian Calnan from EMW Law and crucially operator side – Jason Myers of Busaba Eathai, chaired by Vernon Hunte of the BHA, there was a good balance of viewpoints to inform the discussion. Each voiced their informed views on Brexit and what is certainly a hugely complex and challenging process.
Yes folks, it’s that time of year again when the convenience trade show season kicks off. From Nisa Stoneleigh to the National Convenience Show and P&H’s Pro Retail, the calendar is certainly chock-a-block. Over the coming weeks and months, suppliers big and small will be investing hundreds of thousands of pounds in these shows, from stand builds, staffing, promotional materials, travel, accommodation, PR, marketing and of course that bar bill. With so much outlay, are these shows really cost effective? And what are the best ways to really guarantee sales success and ROI? Trust Jellybean, your retail trade marketing to take you though the top tips…
The lines between retailing, wholesale and foodservice just got even more blurred with the recent controversial announcement of the proposed merger between the UK’s biggest retailer Tesco and one of the UK’s biggest wholesalers Booker. Opinions on the merger differ widely and depending on your view point, this could either be a big opportunity or a big threat.
The popularity of food-to-go (FTG) has never been greater, showing stronger growth than both the eating out market and food retail market over the last few years. Quick service restaurants and convenience stores across the country are learning to quickly adapt to the growing demands of the consumer. The three pillars of food-to-go – tasty, good value and convenient, no longer cut it for the hard working, tech savvy customer. Now it needs to be fresher, hotter, faster and healthier too.
It’s fair to say, that as the leading foodservice agency, eating out is pretty much always top of mind for us, so it was fitting that last Thursday morning saw us heading along to the MCA’s Eating Out ‘Top of Mind’ briefing, where they showcased their decision makers’ survey along with consumer insight, 2017 forecasts and concepts to watch out for. As ever the morning managed to cram in a huge amount of information and insight, but here are my top five take-outs.
Last Monday it seemed was the official start of Christmas in the world of foodservice and hospitality. Not only was it the Arena Christmas Event, it was also the Hospitality Action ‘Star Filled Night’ gala Christmas dinner. Of course as the leading foodservice pr agency we were at both (Oh you poor things I hear you cry!). Lunch at the Jumeriah Carlton Tower, followed by dinner prepared by chefs including none other than Raymond Blanc OBE, at Brassie Joel at the Westminster Park Plaza Hotel – not too shabby a start to the week by anyone’s standards.
On a cold and frosty Thursday morning myself and fellow ‘bean’ Gemma made our way to the M by Montcalm hotel in Shoreditch to hear the latest insight on the UK hotel market from MCA. As the leading foodservice agency, representing a number of clients for whom the hotel sector is a key market focus, we were there ready to take it all in. Simon Stenning and his team took it in turns to run us through every aspect of the report including quantitative market data, consumer insight and even decision maker opinion, but here are our top ten take-outs…
As the leading foodservice agency we make sure we get along to as many Arena networking events as possible and certainly never miss the annual Face 2 Face with Alistair Stewart. This year it was held at the stunning Landmark London Hotel with a line-up including the headline interview with Dennis Hogan MD of Compass Group UK & Ireland, as well as a panel discussion on the impact of Brexit on the hospitality industry.
