To Restaurant Discounts, Customers Say ‘Meh’

Earlier this year, it looked like deals would boost traffic at eateries, but that hasn’t been the case.

October 31, 2016

NEW YORK CITY – This has been the year of the restaurant deal, from causal chains offering enticements to get customers in the door to fast-food chains stocking value menus with ever bigger deals, Nation’s Restaurant News reports. However, those promotions have failed to deliver on traffic.

This year, traffic across the restaurant industry has dropped 1.9% during each of the past five months, according to MillerPulse. Black Box Intelligence has noted traffic at restaurants has declined 13.3% since 2008.

Consumers are spending less while dining out, which means that they’re likely to be using deals, but still traffic is down. MillerPulse data shows that average check (which is the difference between traffic and same-store sales) has hovered around 2.5% since 2014. But this year, average check dropped to 1.9%. The average check at quick-service restaurants is 1.8%, a significant drop from the 2.9% three-year average.

McDonald’s has struggled this year to increase traffic at its U.S. locations, despite its all-day breakfast menu. Chipotle Mexican Grill has suffered as well, although its customer decline could be attributed to recent food-safety problems.

Overall, chain restaurants seem to be bleeding customers, perhaps because of the increasing options to purchase prepared foods. For example, convenience stores continue to offer quality foodservice to a growing customer base. 

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement