MCA Marketing in Foodservice Conference 2016
As a leading foodservice agency we make it our business to stay informed of the challenges that our clients face in the market and endeavour to provide them with solutions. We were therefore delighted to attend the MCA Marketing in Foodservice Conference 2016 which brought together senior marketing professionals from across the foodservice sector to discuss the current challenges faced and how they are dealing with them.

Caffe Culture 2016
With around 1.7bn cups of coffee sold each year in the UK, across more than 18,000 outlets, the coffee shop market is a substantial one which shows no sign of slowing. Indeed, predictions see it reaching 21,000 outlets by 2020, so it’s little wonder that this foodservice industry sector has its very own show – Caffè Culture – held over two days at Kensington Olympia 10-11th May. The show is targeted at groups like Costa and Nero, as well as the growing number of independent coffee shops, and indeed all those involved in the coffee market, which extends of course to the world of contract catering with operators like Compass, Sodexo, Bartlett Mitchell, etc. With 1 in 5 people in the UK visiting coffee shops in the UK, its big business for this boutique show. As your leading foodservice marketing agency, you’d expect us to be in attendance and report back, right? Too right. Here goes.
Recent research carried out by the Caffè Culture Show with over 1,600 consumers and 100 café owners found that over two thirds of café businesses saw an increase in turnover of over 10% YOY, with 51% seeing an increase in coffee sales, 42% seeing an increase in lunch sales and 26% seeing an increase in breakfast sales. A staggering 33% saw an increase in turnover of over £150,000. However, it seems the biggest challenge they face is driving healthy profits with 52% of established businesses naming this as a key issue and 41% of start-ups. Staffing is also a hot topic with 37% of established businesses identifying this as a key challenge, along with 41% of start-ups. Interestingly with so much focus on the on-the-go market Caffé Culture’s research showed that 60% of consumers choose to drink-in with only 40% opting to take-out.
As to what is driving customers through the door, well, great coffee is unsurprisingly the main driver with 81%, followed by a convenient location 45% and friendly and professional staff 30%, so get all these three right and you’ll be on to a winner. In general, 51% of consumers would like to see more independent coffee shops with 63% preferring to use an independent. They also want to see better quality coffee (42%) and more differentiation between coffee shops (35%).
In light of this insight the show’s aim is to blend business and coffee in order to help big and small operators alike find new ideas and suppliers to build a profitable business. By its very nature there is a fair amount of coffee about (as you would expect), however, with coffee shops looking to differentiate their offer and cater to the growing demand for all day dining there was far more than just coffee on offer. Incremental sales of snacks, breakfast and lunch are a big revenue driver for coffee shops, as is offering a wide and varied beverage menu with added theatre, so it was little surprise to see the likes of Twinings there wowing the gathered visitors with their masterclass on the theatre of tea (it’s not all about coffee!). Whilst new and niche soft drinks looked to catch the eye of passing buyers with Birch Water, Aloe Water, the exhibitor award winning Peanut ‘Hottie’ (a delicious peanut version of hot chocolate – is the best way I can describe it), flavoured syrups, funky furniture, innovative packaging, crazy flavours of crisps and popcorn, shiny equipment, tempting cakes and melt-in-the-mouth biscuits, were all there to be viewed and sampled. And as the leading foodservice agency, frankly it would have been rude not to try it all (all in the name of market research you understand).
With a background accompaniment from the obligatory hipster duo on guitar and box drum, the show was small but perfectly formed to appeal to the coffee shop market. The packed line-up at the business theatre and masterclass stage, not to mention the cupping zone, independent coffee roasters village and artisan food market meant there was something for everyone. So if you didn’t make it along this year and the coffee shop market is ‘your bag’ make sure you have the dates in your diary for 2017.
To find out more about the show click here.
Sources: Market stats from Allegra Strategies & insight from Cafeconomy 2016 Results
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

MCA Menu & Food Trends Report Top Ten Takeouts
As the leading foodservice agency we like to keep abreast of the latest foodservice trends and eating out market insight and so we were delighted to attend the MCA Menu & Food Trends Report this morning. If you weren’t lucky enough to be there, worry not, as we have listed our top ten take outs below:
1) The market on the whole is looking positive, as despite falling consumer confidence (likely to be due to uncertainty around Brexit) disposable income is at an all-time high and up £12 YOY with the average person having £198 per week to spend – hopefully on eating and drinking out of home!
2) GDP is growing at 0.6% and has now been in growth for twelve consecutive quarters. Indeed MCA predict the eating and drinking out market as a whole will grow by 3% this year, out-performing the economy as a whole. You can see why when you look at participation levels which are running at a healthy 92.6% with increasing frequency to boot, with breakfast and snacking/grab & go showing the strongest growth over the next 2-3 years when it comes to day parts.
3) However, as operators look to offset the increased overhead of the National Living Wage (which in general they believe will have a positive effect on the industry) menu prices are on the rise as we see a ‘menu pricing step’ change, with 5% rises not uncommon. Mains and sides currently see the most price rises, whilst overall operators look to rationalise menus (with the exception of premium pubs which are extending menus) with a drive to do less but better, by focusing on quality, which is the no.1 consumer driver.
4) When it comes to protein, chicken is still no. 1 with a 20% share of lunch and dinner, but the peak of chickenisation may be waning as Beef and Pork are the fastest growing proteins with vegetarian dishes and seafood in decline. Interestingly the mega trend of healthy eating doesn’t seem to be born out when it comes to actual consumer behaviour from the research, as indulgence seems to be winning out. However, healthy eating is sighted by industry chefs as likely to increase in popularity over the next 2-3 years, especially gluten-free, vegetarian, fish and vegan. Consumers are also moving to more on the go and informal eating out styles and tending to eat fewer courses, with a rise of one course meals and move away from traditional format sit-down dining.
5) Menu items in growth include in-bread carriers (think sandwiches and all their various permutations), premium burgers, all day breakfasts, sausages, along with ham, bacon and cheese fillings in bread carriers. However, vegetarian, mushroom dishes, seafood, curry and salad don’t seem to be proving as popular. Smoked and slow cooked are both coming through on menus alongside the ever popular, grilled, roasted and fried. Whilst natural cooking methods like wood-fired, BBQ and steaming are growing, especially when they can offer theatre and quality cues to customers. Spices and sauces are being more widely referenced on menus along with a broad variety of cuisines, provenance and up-selling messages to drive spend.
6) Formats such as street food, all day dining, pop-ups and food on the go are topping the chart when it comes to growth with healthier eating, BBQ, premium burgers, street food and Vietnamese tipped by industry leaders to be the fastest growing cuisines over the next 3-5 years. And it will be more important than ever to offer a point of difference aligned to customer demand as menus shrink bringing with it the risk of homogenisation at the same time as increasing prices. Big bold flavours can help to set menus apart, along with authentic cuisines (Asian is especially strong) and of course value for money.
7) Consumers want quality – no change there. With millennials looking for cheaper menus, promotions, fast service and healthier options (despite the fact that only 6% of all consumers polled were driven by health when choosing where to eat out), whilst the 50+ market are more focused on convenience and environment, as well as if they have visited before. Sectors that seem to be upping their game when it comes to delivering against consumer drivers include workplace and colleges, as contract caterers and in-house operators up their game to compete with food on the go and casual dining high street concepts.
8) As for mega trends – they remain the same: healthier eating, indulgence, informality, premiumisation, provenance and value scrutiny. Established cuisine trends include: BBQ, North American, Mexican, Brazilian/South American, Vietnamese, Thai and SE Asian. Coming-up behind them are Caribbean (Turtle Bay is a personal favourite), Modern Spanish, North African, British, Nordic, Modern Greek, Lebanese Persian, Contemporary Indian, Sri Lankan, Taiwanese, Korean and Japanese. Throw in Germanic, Malaysian and Peruvian and you’ve got a fair old choice out there.
9) As for ingredients and the ever present question of ‘what’s the next pulled pork?’ look out for…alternative grains, alternative cuts, ‘burnt’ foods, Cacao, Dosa, fermented foods (pickling), Pokē and root to stem vegetables coming through on menus. Whilst avocado, Banh Mi, cauliflower, Chia seeds, grilled cheese (yum!), Matcha and sweet potato are listed as hot trends while breakfast pots, Chipotle, Harrisa, Kimchi, Quinoa, sourdough and Siracha come under emerging trends. Then, moving to more established trends you have edamame, fresh pasta, kale & super foods, mac ‘n cheese, ramen and sushi. But what do the industry experts think will be big? Allergies and healthy is high on their predictions with gluten-free, vegan and raw diets becoming more important to cater for. They see street food as continuing to be strong and cooking methods like wood-fired becoming more popular. Key to success will be concepts which are easy to understand, on-trend, offer value for money and are approachable.
10) Finally, it’s time for the drinks menu, with mocktails, beer cocktails, birch water, Mead, reverse osmosis water and Soju identified as warm trends while hot trends include craft spirits, Japanese Whisky, loose leaf tea and prosecco or wine on tap. Emerging trends include Almond milk, green juice, premium tonics and unusual smoothies. Whilst at the more established end of the trends scale you have artisan coffee, coconut water and craft beer. As for those on the slide, bubble tea, full sugar carbonates, flavoured water and fruit juices may have peaked.
As for the MCA team, they personally have been doing more of the following over the past year: using chopsticks to get the best out of Asian food, using mobile payment apps, ‘gastro-tourism’ i.e. travelling for food and seeking out the latest restaurant openings, eating more Chia pudding as part of a clean eating regime, enjoying crushed avocado and craft beer – but not all at once! Whilst Simon has been on a gourmet tour of NYC taking in an innovative vegan concept ‘by Chloe’, Michelin beer pairing at ‘Luksus at Torst’, design led restaurant concepts including ‘Quality Eats’, Jewish Russian Bagel café turn evening Bistro ‘Sadelle’s’ and even sour craft beer!
As ever the briefing was highly enjoyable and informative, and really the above barely scratches the surface of the full report which is available to MCA Forum members. Well done to the team at MCA on a great event and a comprehensive round up of the market.
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice trends and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Arena Savoy Lecture 2016
As the leading foodservice agency we will always be found at the regular Arena events, keeping abreast of the latest news and gossip and networking with friends and colleagues. This Monday was no exception, as we headed to the Savoy to hear from Ken McMeikan, CEO of Brakes. The Arena speakers are of course always very informative, but to hear from the man at the helm of Brakes in the wake of the Sysco acquisition was certainly something of a draw! The evening began with bubbles and a selection of delicious canapés and then it was through to the River Room for the main event.
Ken McMeikan was introduced by Andy Kemp of Bidvest (which must have been a little strange for them both as direct competitors), who outlined his distinguished career which started in the Royal Navy and progressed through senior roles with Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Greggs and then of course onto Brakes where he took up the role of CEO in March 2013. Then it was time for Ken to take to the stage and address the audience. It was a polished and well researched piece, the key take-outs of which are below:
1) Brakes – Their market share is 21% in the UK, 6% in France and 14% in Sweden, serving 200,000 customer sites across Europe. They combined their IT systems and are now completely multi-temp having invested £125m in infrastructure. 2015 was a big year with the purchase of Fresh Direct (the national fresh food wholesaler) and Davigel from Nestle which extended their market share in Spain, Belgium and Luxemburg, and doubled their French market share. Then this year, having been on the brink of floating, they were at the very last minute purchased by US food giant Sysco in a $3.1bn deal which will complete in July and which is likely to signal further growth for Brakes as a pan European player offering further scale and efficiencies to the business.
2) Eating Out – Over the past 30 years the market has seen excellent growth at around a 3.5% compound annual growth rate with continued growth forecast. The growth in eating out is being driven by population growth which is predicted to increase by over 4.5m over the next decade, whilst a record 12.5m women are in work, creating 60% of duel income households with less time to cook. Also the influx of tourism which peaked in January 2016 with a record 2.5m visitors to the UK – over 6% more than in 2015. Indeed in 2015 it was estimated that there are 1million more adults eating out and that more people are eating out more often than ever before, but interestingly spending less as eating out becomes a lower ticket meal occasion, with generation Y key to this growth in eating out. And when eating out, 38% of adults say that food quality is the most important factor when choosing an outlet. Sadly, there is still an incredible failure rate for food businesses as 2014 saw 22,000 new business open but a staggering 20,000 close representing a high churn rate. It is of course still a positive growth, but more is needed to help businesses thrive in this sector as foodservice offers real promise for growth over and above retail.
3) Growth Trends – Well unsurprisingly Ken identified fresh produce as a growth trend (having bought Fresh Direct) which links in with the consumer demand for high quality. Also, fast casual and food on the go, along with locally sourced products and the demand for provenance which they are focusing on via their 25 regional distribution hubs. In Scotland alone they currently buy £75m worth of Scottish sourced products and intend to grow this to £120m by 2020.
4) Closing the Gap – Ken believed that when he started with Brakes that foodservice was 10-15 years behind retail but believes the gap is closing and will continue to lessen as foodservice companies make the most of advances in technology including ecommerce, data analytics around tracking orders and the rise of internet penetration which is forecast to hit 7.6billion in 2020.
5) Three Risks – He also identified three key risks to the industry: cost challenges, skills shortage and obesity. The first is of course top of mind with the National Living Wage taking the over-twenty-fives onto £7.20 per hour with a view to rise to £9 per hour by 2020. It is estimated that this may result in the loss of 60,000 jobs across the hospitality sector. These unintended consequences are something he believes could have been avoided with greater government consultation with businesses and may very well result in hikes in prices. The skills gap has long been talked about and with 51% of catering colleges seeing a downturn in enrolment and 11,000 chefs needed by 2020 (according to the recent People 1st report) and 870,000 staff needed to simply replace those leaving the industry there is likely to be a substantial experience gap on the horizon. It could be that the industries potential growth could be limited by lack of people and relevant skills, therefore we need to attract good people into the industry by making a career in foodservice more enticing, which it should be as few industries offer such an opportunity for creativity and entrepreneurialism. Finally health and nutrition is key both to our nation and our sector with 400,000 deaths in the EU attributed to excess weight. Six out of ten of us are overweight and over 30% of children are overweight or obese. The sugar tax has of course hit the headlines and personal accountability must play some part, but Ken argues the industry must do its part and help to reduce hidden sugar in food much like they have done with salt and trans fats. Companies must take a proactive role and help us overcome the obesity crisis.
6) Meals & More – Ken believes passionately that businesses should help the less fortunate. It is true that ‘hunger is born of poverty and inequality not food scarcity’, as global food production is 1.5 times enough to feed us and globally the statistics on the amount of food wasted is terrifying at around a third. In the UK 1 in 4 children will only have a hot meal in school which highlights the importance of the free school meals programme. However, in school holidays children are going hungry which is one of the reasons Brakes has launched its charity initiative, ‘Meals & More’ offering regional clubs to feed children after school and in the holidays. In September 2014 it had raised £370,000 through 31 suppliers to help feed hungry children who for whatever reason were not getting the right food to help them thrive. If you’re interested in supporting this initiative you can find out more here: www.makelunch.org.uk/blog/meals-more
7) What I love – When it comes to foodservice there’s a lot to love, but Ken picked out these key points: the most amazing people, a heritage of food innovation leading retail, changing consumers experience’ with food from around the world and helping to build the high street brands of tomorrow. All in all a dynamic and exciting industry.
8) Four Predictions – The UK eating out of home market will grow to be more like the US, accounting for over 50% of all food consumed (in 2014 it accounted for 42%). Casual dining will continue to grow and help to make our high streets more attractive. Under 30s / Gen Y will be hugely important to market success and technology will be key to reaching them. Finally, (and perhaps this is a hint at the future of Brakes?) Ken sees more consolidation in the market ahead as bigger players buy up smaller ones to generate growth.
Ken then went on to face some challenging questions from the floor where we saw his personality and quick thinking come to the fore. His opinions? Well on Brexit, unsurprisingly for the CEO of a pan-European company he’d prefer to avoid uncertainty and stay in (as the thought of renegotiating all those trading agreements isn’t an attractive one) – but with no crystal ball it’s too close to call. On leadership, the way ahead is to listen to colleagues and customers and develop a plan for leaders and future leaders around the outputs (as they have). On procurement vs. quality, purchasing well is key as customers want the best price without compromising on service, quality and innovation (easy said!). On the future of foodservice, he sees technology playing a greater role in the kitchen with gains in efficiency from using pre-prepared food and even robots for basic tasks. And finally on the Sysco purchase, he feels Brakes would have suited floating well and have offered an opportunity for investors to buy into a growth sector but the Sysco synergies and cultural match is a good one and he sees a bright future with increased scale and opportunity ahead.
Having digested Ken’s food for thought it was time to enjoy a fabulous meal prepared by the team at the Savoy and finished off with an impressive cheese board from sponsors Futura Foods. Well done to Lorraine and the team at Arena on another outstanding event and to Ken on an informative talk at a very interesting time!
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Horizon's Annual Briefing 2016 Ten Top Take Outs
As the leading foodservice marketing agency we were lucky enough to be invited along to the ‘invitation only’ Annual Horizons Briefing, at the world’s largest firm of lawyers, Dentons. As ever the great and the good of the foodservice world gathered to hear what Horizons FS had to say on the state of the ‘out of home’ nation. The day kicked off as usual with a confidential talk from a leading economist on the wider macro setting which of course influences the foodservice market. Then it was on to the specifics of the out of home market. There was as ever a huge amount of information to digest from Peter and his team, not to mention the pearls of wisdom from M Restaurants, GBK and Dentons, as part of the panel discussion and Q&A session, but here are my top ten takeouts from the day…
1) The foodservice market (based on food and beverage sales) rose to around £47.9bil in 2015 and is growing at around 2%, taking us back to similar levels seen in 2008 – an expanding market at a slower rate of growth. But there are, as Horizons put it ‘stones in the road’ to bear in mind such as the slowdown in the economy, consumers becoming more cautious, Brexit, national living wage, rising rents and business rates and even England’s future football performance! However, the long term forecast is positive with 2020 set to see the market hit £56.1bn
2) QSR, Hotels and Pubs (and education) are doing well with strong growth, whilst staff catering, healthcare and services are in decline. Food and drink sales in QSR, restaurants and hotels are forecast to grow in 2016. As for overall winners and losers, on the winning side are pizza and pasta restaurants, pub restaurants, coffee shops, sandwich shops and of all things, holiday camps (!), whilst the losers (lowest performers) are tenanted and leased pubs, airlines, off shore, fish & chips / kebab shops and traditional cafes.
3) The smaller casual dining chains are driving innovation in the market with ones to watch like Creams, Turtle Bay and Filmore & Union.
4) Discounting and vouchers are still around but operators are far more savvy, using more sophisticated techniques to drive brand loyalty via online marketing or brand apps and clever vouchering to drive traffic in downtime or to upsell around occasions.
5) After some dips, eating out penetration is back to 72% where it was back in June 2012. Burgers remain no.1 on menus, whilst healthier food to go is also on the rise demonstrating how consumers want to be good but only sometimes!
6) New twists on old favourites are coming through on menus, such as Lobster mac ‘n’ cheese, arctic roll, toasties and even popping candy. Whilst Wagyu beef, cholla buns and chilli jam fillings along with wellbeing superfoods and gluten free options seem to be cropping up more and more.
7) The trend seems to be for acquisition, whether it’s Sysco buying up Brakes or larger high street brands to buy up the smaller ones. However, bucking the trend and still independent are ‘bubbling under brands’ like Shoryu Ramen, Almost Famous Burgers, Tootoomoo, Snowflake Luxury Gelato and M Restaurants.
8) As far as operator trends go, coffee shops, Mexican fast casual, Italian casual dining, sandwich bars, healthy quick service and juice bars seem to be doing well. London is still key but other large conurbations offer eating out ‘hot spots’.
9) The restaurant market could learn a thing or two from the airlines when it comes to things like being able to choose your table prior to dining and re-marketing online to traffic that has visited their site and then shops around online. Whilst with the rise of the likes of Deliveroo, restaurants need to make dining-in attractive to drive bookings by offering a real experience, differentiating it from the delivered option whilst still benefiting from the incremental sales ‘delivery’ can offer.
10) Finally a word of wisdom on menu innovation from a very experienced operator – simply put…try stuff and see if it sells – sounds fair enough to me!
So in summary for 2016, as Peter Backman puts it, ‘There are lots of opportunities, but also plenty to stumble on!’
#HrznsAB
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Digital Food and Drink Conference
As you would expect from the leading foodservice digital agency, much of our time is spent ensuring we are abreast of the latest trends in our industry. And so it was that I found myself bound for this year’s Digital Food and Drink Conference held at America Square in London.
With a truly impressive selection of speakers I was looking forward to the thrust and parry of debate as retailer and brand alike took to the stage to put forward their presentations and debate how each can help one and other deliver success in the digital space.
For those of you not lucky enough to have attended, here are my top 10 take outs from the day’s speakers. Ready? Right, here goes.
1) Kate Douglas from Twitter talked about their exciting new products – namely Amplify, Moments and Niche. Want to keep up to speed on social? Go and read up on those.
2) ASDA noted that ‘incentivised’ emails outperformed Supplier Branded emails by a factor of 30%. Looks like money off or a giveaway still reigns supreme.
3) Steve Millard of Burton’s Biscuits revealed that the value of online sales in food is set to double by 2020 – those not exploiting digital are missing out – big time.
4) A straw poll of attendees showed zero plans for adoption of iBeacon technology – the need for an app, bluetooth enabled, lack of signal in store all seems too high a barrier.
5) Jamie Nascimento from Orangina spoke of his ‘comma, not full stop’ approach – always think of the next step you wish a consumer to make to continue their marketing journey.
6) Gordon Morrin of Kerry Foods shared the success of Sausage and Chip – his Christmas campaign, and how emotional marketing drove great results for Richmond sausages.
7) Jamie from Orangina talked of ‘thumb-stopping’ video – quick, video edits from a longer cut without audio that encourage mobile users to stop in their scrolling and take note.
8) Dan Jeffreys from Bettys / Taylors of Harrogate showed the room his case study for how a viral video of their £250.00 Easter Egg drove online chatter and ultimately sales uplift. Seems like a good stunt, well executed is still a very powerful way of getting virtual tongues wagging.
9) Nick Bamber of Asda and Joe Comiskey of Unilever spoke of the power of customer reviews online, and how they even power shopper behaviour in store as well as via the e-commerce experience.
10) On average we unlock our phones 150 times a day, Twitter sends 6000 tweets per second, 1 in 5 of us follow a food brand on Twitter, we tweet more about #meat than #chocolate, and Greek food is fastest growing food trend on Twitter. Enough stats for one day? Thought so.
So an all-round great event, and a fascinating collection of speakers from the world of foodservice digital. Thanks to Global Insight Conferences for a great event and for providing a platform for us digital foodies to congregate and thrash out the hot topics. Events as thoughtfully curated as this are hard to come by in my experience. We’re looking forward to next year’s event already!
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice digital agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Food on the Go Conference 2016 – Top Ten Take-outs
With a jam-packed agenda for the day it’s quite a challenge to cram all the key take-outs from M&C Allegra’s Food on the Go conference into one blog, but as the leading foodservice agency we’ll do our best!
1) Currently the on the go market is possibly the most innovative, dynamic and competitive sector of the out of home market. Growing an impressive 5.4%, it’s outstripping the rest of the market by some way, as food bought to eat off premise (the definition of on the go) accounts for 1 in 4 of every pound spent out of home! With lunch hours now around 27 minutes (dropping from 36 minutes in 2000) the pressure is on for operators to deliver great food, fast!
2) Highly fragmented, the top ten players account for only 33% of the market with large retailers dominating at the top due to their proliferation of sites. C-stores are gaining share but suffer from a lack of innovation and often limited offer due to the independent family run nature of the business.
3) Street food is still on the increase and millennials are driving the market with their demand for high quality, good value food on the go. As for the recipe for success? Well, according to M&C Allegra it’s simple – fresher, faster & hotter!
4) What does the on the go consumer look like (versus the general outing out consumer)? Research findings from M&C Allegra indicates the following: 53% Male (vs. 49% of total Eating Out participants), 66% Under 50 (vs. 51%), 17% London (vs. 13%), 67% Full-time workers (vs. 56%), 36% Earn £40k+ (vs. 31%). What consumers want when it comes to food on the go is pretty simple – fast service, close to work, product freshness and healthier options. Queuing, unsurprisingly, is the biggest frustration, joined by lack of choice and over pricing. Whilst promotions definitely drive sales with 65% of consumers using promotions and 1 in 6 consumers stating they would choose to go elsewhere if a promotion was removed. As for what people are buying on the go, sandwiches and cola are key purchases, as is bottled water, but the popularity of sandwiches is in decline as the rise of other bread carriers and salad options increases.
5) The rising trends in on the go food include: Pan-Asian, gluten-free, vegetarian, healthier, hot product, Americana, premiumisation and hotter sauces. And if you’re looking to be inspired by some new and different food to go concepts it’s worth visiting: Wolf Street Italian, The Bowler, Hai Street Kitchen, HOP (exciting Vietnamese concept), ŰGOT (too cool for school, clean eating concept set up by an unfeasibly precocious (in a good way!) gluten avoider instead of a frozen yogurt bar), Friska (with a real vision to ‘refine expectations within our industry from the inside out’), Coco di Mama (owned by Azzuri who also own ZiZi and Ask), Crussh Juice Bars (so much more than just food!), Hackney Eat 17 (a Spar convenience store!) and Vital Ingredient (defining healthy on the go).
6) Transport hubs are of course a key focus of food on the go and Tom Dobson from Network Rail is responsible for the 18 largest stations in the UK and their F&B offering. In 2020 he predicts 1 billion people will visit these stations and this will generate 1 billion in F&B revenue – impressive stuff. In 2015 alone they experienced 900 million visits to these top 18 stations, an increase of 7%, with like for like sales growing at 6% last year, so food to go concepts looking for a sure bet could do worse than consider key stations for their next opening it would seem.
7) McDonald’s is the goliath in the food to go market and also boasts some impressive stats….90% of people visit McDonald’s, they have seen 39 consecutive quarters of sales growth, from their research with 5,000 consumers they know that 17-24 year olds want more spice on the menu and don’t feel that McDonald’s is contemporary enough. This is something the company is addressing with its roll-out of new concept stores, which include: a signature range of more thicker, more premium burgers, customisation, a new look including a new style uniform and convenient touch screen ordering points. Keep an eye out for these new and improved stores coming soon! The bad news, unlike the US they won’t be doing all day breakfast (sad times).
8) The challenges and opportunities common to operators big and small consist of – the crazy London property market with exorbitant rents and unreasonable contracts, minimising queue times, getting and keeping good people, competition, standing out in the market, creating an emotional engagement to their brand which keeps customers loyal and delivering consistently high quality food to a highly discerning and increasingly impatient customer base. Whilst opportunities include: focusing on what they do well rather than becoming a jack of all trades, the use of technology around payment and pre-ordering both in store and pre-store visit, social media engagement and use as a real time customer relations and service tool, expansion into other locations and even countries, partnering up with other operators (e.g. Starbucks and Pod / Costa and Chop’d), understanding consumer behaviour around food on the go, the rise of Pan Asian, Middle Eastern and free from.
9) In at nine and more of an observation than a take-out, it would seem that the majority of food on the go start-ups are run by ex-bankers who obsess about their lunch for years from the confines of the city before taking the plunge and leaving the trading floors, boardrooms and city bonuses behind to make lunchtimes more enjoyable for the rest of us!
10) Finally and possibly the key take-out for the day – if you stack two keep cups from Friska they are the same height as a groundhog! Good to know.
Thankfully having been to the 2015 Food on the Go conference, I can say without a doubt that this year’s was far from a groundhog day (see what I did there!) as it brought together all players in the food to go market from the big boys like McDonald’s, Starbucks, Leon, Wild Bean Café and Pret to new innovative start-ups like Friska, Hop and ŰGOT offering up the latest market data and insights to keep everything aptly fresh. Well done to the team at M&C Allegra on another great event. To find out more about M&C Allegra visit http://www.mcallegra-fs.com/
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Propel Multi Club Event
The Propel Multi Club events are a must attend for those in the pub and casual dining world. Offering a range of expert industry speakers covering everything from the economic outlook to practical case studies, these events throughout the year have to deliver solid content in order to justify a day out of the business for these key players in the industry. The programme is very much aimed at multiple operators looking to build and grow a successful business and as such they offer a great opportunity for brands to highlight their products and services and even get to sample their wares. With an exhibition area used for breaks and lunch there is ample time to get face to face with the kind of individuals that are very difficult to pin down any other way.
With an attendee list that reads like a who’s who of the pub and high street dining world the day kicked-off with a look at the current economic trends and how they may impact on the eating and drinking out market. Speaking with no notes (quite an achievement) Ian King of Sky News talked knowledgably about the past twelve months and what might be in store for the months ahead, in what he termed as currently a pretty ‘benign’ market, as the impact of the national living wage takes effect.
The day went on to cover the headline grabbing world of mergers and acquisitions, synonymous with the pub sector, with Peter Hansen from Sapient Corporate Finance looking at the structure of the market and the impact of the MRO (market rent only) option. He ran through and what models are available in the market, from free of tie leases like Duck and Rice, to joint ventures with pub co freehold and Managed Expert Programmes like Hippo, where everything apart from the labour is controlled by the pub co and the manager receives a percentage of income. With low food inflation, low interest rates and a recovering economy the pub sector is looking good for the moment despite uncertainty over the possible impact of the MRO and growing competition from casual dining and retail. However with rates in London soon to rise and the possibility of food and energy costs increasing we will have to see what happens. Although it is fair to say that with more flexible options available there are still opportunities in the sector, although those with less than five years on their leases face an uncertain future and would be well advised to look at what deals can be done with their pub co’s property director.
Keeping with the finance theme, accountancy firm haysmacintyre took to the stage to advise the audience on the best way to manage their tax liability. My main take out…I think I’m in the wrong job, as there looks like there is some serious money to be made in pubs! Then it was on to hear from Enterprise Inns about building an 800-strong managed pub estate and the investment and progress in the leased and tenanted part of the business. Paul Harbottle talked us through the profiling of the Enterprise Inn estate and threw in some top tips when opening a site, such as getting prominent PTA, WI or Parish Council individuals on-side to help ensure its a success. In his experience it takes twelve months for a pub to get up and running and you should never expect to change history, if a site has a drug or violence problem then the chances are it still will have when you take over. But most importantly he stressed getting the right people who were ‘up for the challenge’ and made the point that often a good landlord doesn’t make for a good pub manager.
Then it was time for delegates to catch-up and network over lunch and take a stroll around the sponsors’ stands and after a delicious meal from the team at The Lancaster London it was time for the afternoon session. Toby Smith of Novus Leisure showcased their makeover of the Balls Brothers concept along with their real time social media feedback loop employed in everyone’s favourite nightspot – Tiger Tiger. He was followed by the irrepressible Martin Wolstencroft of Arc Inspirations whose passion for his business came across from the off. With thirteen (and one in the pipeline) bars/restaurants, predominately in the North, he’s been building his operation for the last thirteen years and has a portfolio of nine brands, ranging from sophisticated cocktail bars in city centre locations like Manahatta to American inspired craft beer and ribs concept ‘The Pit’. By ensuring all his staff really care, sourcing locally and insisting on consistency across the estate, he has built up an extremely successful business with concepts to match any location. Run on home-grown talent, many of his senior team started out as part time bar or restaurant staff as students, but by offering a culture they love (not to mention the odd performance related ski trip or jaunt to Ibiza) Arc have managed to keep staff engaged and motivated to deliver the very best for their customers.
Event Sponsor Fishbowl then took to the stage in a double header to take us through the technology behind sophisticated menu engineering which can help maximise both profit margins and customer base. With impressive case studies from the US, some of the more techy elements may have met a few blank faces, but the message was clear – with the use of the right programmes you can ensure you have the best money making menu possible. Whereas once gutfeel was all there was, now technology can let light in on the magic of a successful menu.
Loungers was next up to share their learnings. With seventy one sites and another four planned before Christmas the chain, which started with three friends and a vision, is big business now with venture capital backing. Their all day dining concept and strategic decision to go for secondary high streets has worked well. They even have their own in-house build team which means they can streamline fitting-out a site in five to six weeks. They also have the Cosy Club brand which although smaller is doing well with seven to eight opening every year. With Loungers seeing 100% overtrading honeymoon period for new sites, that can last up to four months, they are certainly doing something right and Nick Collins MD plans to continue the journey for a long time to come.
Another operator who seems to have made a niche for themselves is Brewhouse & Kitchen. With an actual craft brewery on every site they offer not just a bar and restaurant but an experience. With brewing days and masterclasses hosted by their master brewers, not to mention gift ideas I might very well have to take a trip up to Islington (the nearest one to us in leafy Leatherhead).
The day ended with an insight into what makes a great leader with Anne Elliott, event sponsor, sharing the outputs of many a conversation with some of the most successful individual in the industry. The answer? Vision, listening, asking why?, engaging, surrounding yourself with the best, helping people achieve what they never thought possible, saying thank you, putting yourself in others shoes, being yourself and leading from alongside your team. Indeed, many felt they were still learning every day. A topic which was then taken up by the panel discussion with business leaders from Spirit, Ego Restaurants and Thorley Taverns to get their thoughts on the principles of high quality leadership – and on that inspiring note the day came to a close.
Well done to Paul Charity, Jo Charity, Sharon Dickinson and Adam Dickinson, the team behind this great day, not to mention the sponsors who make it all possible. To find out more about Propel or sign-up to their e-newsletter visit www.propelinfonews.com
Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing agency and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, food and drink pr, digital and foodservice design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.
