Tami Barnard’s Post

McDonald’s just posted its first revenue drop in 13 quarters—a stark sign of slowing consumer spending and rising price sensitivity. As budgets tighten, shoppers are more vigilant about how and where they spend. 🧐💸 This shift means in-store execution is crucial. If your products don’t stand out and offer real value, you’ll miss out on this tightening market. The Big Mac Index is a warning: as consumer habits evolve, so must your shelf strategy. With ParallelDots’ ShelfWatch, you get real-time insights and precision management to stay ahead of these trends. Ready to adapt and thrive? Book a meeting with us and turn today’s challenges into tomorrow’s opportunities! 🍔🚀 https://lnkd.in/eQC5tvUx #RetailTrends #ConsumerBehavior #InStoreExecution #ParallelDots #ConsumerInsights #BigMacIndex

Rising Costs vs. Consumer Choices: A Strategic Insight for QSRs In the ever-evolving quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry, understanding the balance between managing rising costs and maintaining consumer loyalty is crucial. A recent development has seen McDonald's grappling with challenges as lower-income consumers shift towards eating at home, influenced by the cooling inflation in grocery prices compared to food-away-from-home. With McDonald's Q4 results showing a mixed bag and the company strategizing to re-engage these valuable customers, the importance of smart operations and pricing strategies has never been more evident. The linked Supermarket News article underscores a pivotal moment for QSRs: the need to adapt to a "normalized growth" post-Covid and address the nuanced demands of lower-income consumers. McDonald's response to the current economic landscape—leveraging marketing, digital innovation, and a focus on affordability—underscores the importance of adaptability and customer-centric strategies. This approach mirrors our belief at Connors Group: operational excellence and strategic labor optimization are crucial for QSRs to remain competitive and maintain customer loyalty in challenging times. By leveraging Connors Group's expertise, your QSR can thrive without resorting to price increases. Our focus on operational productivity and customer satisfaction can help you navigate economic shifts successfully. Check out the linked article to learn more about McDonald's current challenges and strategic responses. https://hubs.la/Q02kB4Q50 #QSR #Operations #Optimization #Restaurants #KitchenDesign

McDonald's is recognizing the need to have a wider variety of value offerings for price conscious consumers. A lot of consumers have spent down their covid era savings and that fact, coupled with huge price hikes over the past 36 months have caused people to be more judicious in how they spend. Several of the top retailers in the country that I work with have recognized the need for robust value variety and include a "value shelf" in the category. In addition to the everyday value pricing they are also promoting regularly (i.e. 2/$2) to drive sales. The industry leaders continue to be ahead of the pricing curve. I expect we will see their upcoming earnings calls show the positive impacts of pricing variety that continues to drive customers from the pump into the stores.

In a recent revelation, McDonald's reported a decline in global sales, attributing it significantly to its pricing strategy amidst rising inflation. This scenario highlights a critical challenge within the quick-service restaurant sector—balancing cost and customer perception of value. It is vital it is to maintain a value proposition that resonates with consumer expectations, especially during economic shifts. Strategic pricing, coupled with innovative service delivery, can enhance customer loyalty and sustain business growth, even when external pressures loom large. This development at McDonald's serves as a poignant reminder of the delicate balance businesses must manage between operational costs and customer satisfaction.

📊 Interesting to see the Pareto principle in action for Delivero in the UK, even though the tail is significantly more powerful than the top performers. For instance, in June 2024, 50k restaurants made approximately 12M orders. 🔝 The top 10% (5,000 restaurants) contributed around 7M orders, which is 58% of the total volume. 📈 The top 20% (10,000 restaurants) accounted for approximately 9M orders or 75% of the total volume. 🛒 The remaining 40k users made the rest, 3M orders. #UKBusiness #ParetoPrinciple #DataAnalysis #CustomerInsights #MarketTrends #BusinessStrategy #Ecommerce #FoodDelivery #delivery #deliveryagregators

Ocado continues to lead as the fastest-growing grocer, with a 12.9% sales boost—the highest since May 2021. Meanwhile, Lidl’s sales have surged by 9.1%, fueled by popular digital vouchers for bakery items. Lidl's market share now stands at 8.0%, marking consistent growth since April 2021. Interested in the latest trends and the performance of other major players like Tesco and Sainsbury’s? Explore current and historical #GroceryMarketShare data on our interactive data viz: https://lnkd.in/esxprEmu - or read the full article for more insights: https://lnkd.in/evwBWc8t #RetailTrends #ConsumerInsights #GrocerySales #OasisReunion #MarketResearch

A few weeks back, McDonald's experienced a surprising drop in global sales, marking its first decline in 13 quarters. This decrease was attributed to cost-conscious consumers avoiding higher-priced menu items, such as Big Macs. Utilizing Environics Analytics FootFall tool, it was revealed that year-over-year in-store visitation in Canada plummeted by 7% during the first half of 2024. In response, McDonald's launched a promotion-intensive July, featuring several enticing $5-$6 McValue Deals. The outcome? A remarkable 10% year-over-year surge in foot traffic throughout the month. For more details, check out the insightful article here: [Link to Article](https://lnkd.in/g9J5bXjF) #McDonalds #Sales #FootTraffic #Promotions #McDonaldsCanada #Data #QSR #Analytics

Ocado continues to lead as the fastest-growing grocer, with a 12.9% sales boost—the highest since May 2021. Meanwhile, Lidl’s sales have surged by 9.1%, fueled by popular digital vouchers for bakery items. Lidl's market share now stands at 8.0%, marking consistent growth since April 2021. Interested in the latest trends and the performance of other major players like Tesco and Sainsbury’s? Explore current and historical #GroceryMarketShare data on our interactive data viz: https://lnkd.in/eygKVpBE - or read the full article for more insights: https://lnkd.in/eZVeYKZX #RetailTrends #ConsumerInsights #GrocerySales #OasisReunion #MarketResearch

In a strategic move to attract budget-conscious diners, McDonald’s decision to extend the $5 meal deal demonstrates a keen understanding of the current economic landscape. By maintaining affordability, McDonald’s not only drives guest counts but also positions itself as a customer-centric brand. This tactic aligns perfectly with the objective of sustaining growth amidst financial challenges faced by consumers. In my opinion, this decision reflects a strategic mastery of market adaptation and consumer insight. Extending the meal deal offers immediate value and reinforces long-term customer loyalty, crucial for any brand aiming to thrive in a competitive market. As marketing leaders, how can we further innovate our strategies to balance affordability and profitability in today’s economic climate? #MarketingStrategy #ConsumerInsight #BrandLoyalty #MarketAdaptation #CustomerCentric

" 'We recognize that in several large markets, including the U.S., we have an opportunity to improve our value execution. Consumers still recognize us as the value leader versus our key competitors but it’s clear that our value leadership gap has recently shrunk. We are working to fix that with pace,' McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said on the company’s earnings call. Kempczinski said price increases have made consumers reconsider buying habits. ... McDonald’s executives on the earnings call said lower-income diners have not been moving from the chain to other fast-food restaurants, but instead have been eating out less frequently across most of the company’s markets globally. The company saw consumers pull back in not just the U.S. but globally, particularly families in European markets. 'At the end of the day, we expect customers will continue to feel the pinch of the economy and a higher cost of living for at least the next several quarters in this very competitive landscape,' McDonald’s U.S. President Joe Erlinger said. 'So we believe it is critical for us to consider these factors in order to grow market share, and return to sustainable guest count-led growth for the brand.' " Ece Yildirim, McDonald’s executives admit diners think prices are too high, say they’re working to create value, 𝘊𝘕𝘉𝘊, 29 July 2024, https://lnkd.in/gfxPSFUE