Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- College and university foodservice has posted steady growth since 2009
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- Figure 1: Total US retail sales of college and university foodservice, at current prices, 2009-14
- Steady, but confident growth is forecast for college and university foodservice
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- Figure 2: Fan chart of market value for college and university foodservice sales, at current prices, 2009-19
- Market drivers
- Key players in the market
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- Figure 3: Total US retail sales of college and university managed services and self-managed services foodservice, at current prices, 2010-15
- The consumer
- On-campus snacks are a top opportunity to entice students
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- Figure 4: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on-campus versus off-campus) (means), February 2014
- Students find off-campus restaurants to have more selection and are rated higher on affordability
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- Figure 5: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, February 2014
- Figure 6: Primary reasons for dining off-campus, February 2014
- College students want affordable meals, along with healthy, flavorful, and customizable
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- Figure 7: On-campus dining improvements, February 2014
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- What are the biggest roadblocks for college and university foodservice?
- The issues
- The implications
- How should dining services re-engage the student body?
- The issues
- The implications
- What food or beverage opportunities still remain for college foodservice?
- The issues
- The implications
Trend Application
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- Trend: Non-Standard Society
- Trend: The Real Thing
- Trend: Life Hacking
Market Size and Forecast
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- Key points
- Market size insight
- Sales and forecast of college and university foodservice
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- Figure 8: Total US retail sales of college and university foodservice, at current prices, 2009-19
- Figure 9: Total US retail sales of college and university foodservice, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2009-19
- Self-managed is projected to hold steady
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- Figure 10: Total US retail sales of college and university self-managed services foodservice, at current prices, 2009-19
- Managed foodservice is the engine of growth for the next five years
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- Figure 11: Total US retail sales of college and university managed services foodservice, at current prices, 2009-19
- Fan chart forecast
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- Figure 12: Fan chart of market value for college and university foodservice sales, at current prices, 2009-19
Market Drivers
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- Key points
- Traditional four-year, for-profit colleges are losing enrollment; public colleges and online institutions are growing
- College students are harder hit by unemployment
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- Figure 13: US Unemployment Rate, by month, 2002-14
- The American melting pot brings more prospective students
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- Figure 14: US population by race and Hispanic origin, 2009, 2014, and 2019
- Shift in US demographics makes for smaller incoming college class counts
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- Figure 15: US population, by age, 2009-19
Innovations and Innovators
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- Social meals
- Food trucks
- Beverages
- Food courts
Competitive Context
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- Quick service restaurants
- Fast casual restaurants
- At-home meals
Campus Dining Usage
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- Non-commercial foodservice locations on-campus have a captive audience
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- Figure 16: Campus meal plan usage, February 2014
- Campus meal plans remain a large part in funding foodservice occasions
- Engaging students who sparingly use on-campus cafeterias is the largest opportunity
Campus Dining Frequency
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- Key points
- More meals are sourced off-campus than on-campus during the week, especially on weekends
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- Figure 17: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on-campus) (means), February 2014
- On-campus snacking is a source of opportunity
Campus Dining Drivers and Attitudes
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- Key points
- Students are driven by the convenience of on-campus eateries
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- Figure 18: Attitudes toward on-campus dining, February 2014
- Three out of four students would like an interactive, on-campus dining app
- While variety is available, some students are bored with on-campus cafeteria offerings
- Quality beats out affordability for on-campus dining
College and University Analysis
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- Key points
- The majority of college students are seeking less expensive on-campus foods
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- Figure 19: On-campus dining improvements, by gender, February 2014
- Health desires of students span from salads to locally sourced and organic
- Students want to see more flavorful and ethnic options on-campus
- Customizable and combos are a demand among college students
Menu Analysis
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- On-campus menus will need to step up their game in order to compete with off-campus offerings
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- Figure 20: Quality of foods/beverages ordered on-campus and off-campus, by gender, February 2014
- Top proteins at colleges and universities include chicken, pork, and tofu
- Vegetables are one of the top menued items at colleges and universities
- Vegetarian/vegan is the top menu item claim
- Burgers are popping up on more college menus – but are they hitting the spot for college students?
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- Figure 21: Top 10 menu item dishes at universities, by incidence, second half 2013
Marketing Strategies
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- Overview
- College students have a pulse on healthful eating and sustainability
- Convenience can keep students on-campus
- Variety is the spice of life for on-campus dining halls
- Intertwining technology and the on-campus dining experience
- Students seek out affordability when they dine out
Consumer Data – Overview
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- Overall usage of on-campus eateries based on drivers
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- Figure 22: Primary reasons for dining on-campus or off-campus, February 2014
- Healthy food is desired by nearly all students
- College students want more flavors and ethnic foods from menus
- Customizable and combo meals are important to college students
Consumer Data – By Gender
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- Key points
- Women want to see healthier items at college and university cafeterias, while men seek combo meals and flavorful foods
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- Figure 23: Quality of foods/beverages ordered on-campus, by gender, February 2014
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- Figure 24: On-campus dining improvements, by gender, February 2014
- On-campus coffee offerings are not up to par, according to women
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- Figure 25: Quality of foods/beverages ordered on- and off-campus, by gender, February 2014
- On-campus dining drivers vary between men and women
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- Figure 26: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, by gender, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Age of College Student
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- Key points
- Older students are not engaged users of college foodservice
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- Figure 27: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on- or off-campus) (means), by age, February 2014
- Flavorful and locally sourced foods are a demand from younger college students
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- Figure 28: On-campus dining improvements, by age, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Race
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- Key points
- Meal plan usage ranges by race
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- Figure 29: Campus meal plan usage, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
- Improvements for on-campus dining varies by race
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- Figure 30: On-campus dining improvements, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
- White, Black, and Asian students are dining off-campus to satisfy needs that are not met at school
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- Figure 31: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
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- Figure 32: Primary reasons for dining off-campus, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Hispanic Origin
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- Key points
- Snacking occasions are important to Hispanic students
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- Figure 33: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on-campus) (means), by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
- Hispanics are interested in vegetarian/vegan, combo meals, ethnic foods, beverages, and socializing at on-campus dining locations
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- Figure 34: On-campus dining improvements, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
- Hispanic college students are generally satisfied with their on-campus dining options, especially when it comes down to sustainability, value, and food quality
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- Figure 35: Attitudes toward on-campus dining, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Educational Status/Goals
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- Key points
- Junior colleges struggle to retain students for on-campus meals
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- Figure 36: Campus meal plan usage, by educational status, February 2014
- Healthy is desired among students seeking bachelor’s and master’s/doctoral degrees
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- Figure 37: On-campus dining improvements, by educational goal, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Living Situation
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- Key points
- Students who live at home/on their own do not utilize on-campus eateries as often and seek affordable options
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- Figure 38: Campus meal plan usage, by living location, February 2014
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- Figure 39: On-campus dining improvements, by living location, February 2014
- Off-campus meals for students who live in dorms is driven by their friends
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- Figure 40: Primary reasons for dining off-campus, by living location, February 2014
Consumer Data – By Meal Plan Status
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- Key points
- Drivers differ among students with and without meal plans when eating on-campus
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- Figure 41: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, by meal plan status, February 2014
Appendix – Market Drivers
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- Health and lifestyle
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- Figure 42: American adults by weight category as determined by body mass index (BMI), 2008-Oct. 28, 2013
- Childhood and teen obesity – highest in decades
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- Figure 43: Prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents aged 2-19, 1971-2010
- Consumer confidence
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- Figure 44: University of Michigan’s index of consumer sentiment (ICS), 2007-13
- Unemployment
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- Figure 45: US unemployment rate, by month, 2002-13
- Figure 46: US unemployment and underemployment rates, 2007-13
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- Figure 47: Number of employed civilians in US, 2007-13
- Retail channels
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- Figure 48: Distribution of expenditures on food for off-premise consumption, by channel, 2008-12
- Racial, ethnic population growth
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- Figure 49: US population by race and Hispanic origin, 2009, 2014, and 2019
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- Figure 50: Households with children, by race and Hispanic origin of householder, 2013
- Shifting US demographics
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- Figure 51: US population, by age, 2009-19
Appendix – Market Size
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- Self-managed foodservice
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- Figure 52: Total US retail sales of college and university self-managed services foodservice, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2009-19
- Figure 53: Fan chart of market value for self-managed college and university foodservice sales, at current prices, 2009-19
- Managed services foodservice
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- Figure 54: Total US retail sales of college and university managed services foodservice, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2009-19
- Figure 55: Fan chart of market value for managed services college and university foodservice sales, at current prices, 2009-19
Appendix – Other Useful Consumer Tables
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- Consumer data: by gender
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- Figure 56: Campus meal plan usage, by gender, February 2014
- Consumer data: by age of college student
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- Figure 57: On-campus dining improvements, by age, February 2014
- Consumer data: by ethnicity
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- Figure 58: Living situation, by ethnicity, February 2014
- Consumer data: by Hispanic origin
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- Figure 59: Campus meal plan usage, by race/Hispanic origin, February 2014
- Consumer data: by educational status/goals
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- Figure 60: Campus meal plan usage, by educational status, February 2014
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- Figure 61: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on-campus) (means), by educational status, February 2014
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- Figure 62: Meals and snacks by where purchased (on-campus) (means), by educational goal, February 2014
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- Figure 63: Meals and snacks by where purchased (off-campus) (means), by educational status, February 2014
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- Figure 64: Meals and snacks by where purchased (off-campus) (means), by educational goal, February 2014
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- Figure 65: On-campus dining improvements, by educational goal, February 2014
- Consumer data: by living situation
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- Figure 66: Campus meal plan usage, by living location, February 2014
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- Figure 67: On-campus dining improvements, by living location, February 2014
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- Figure 68: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, by living location, February 2014
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- Figure 69: Primary reasons for dining off-campus, by living location, February 2014
- Consumer data: by meal plan status
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- Figure 70: On-campus dining improvements, by meal plan status, February 2014
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- Figure 71: Primary reasons for dining on-campus, by meal plan status, February 2014
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- Figure 72: Primary reasons for dining off-campus, by meal plan status, February 2014
Appendix – Trade Associations
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