Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The issues
- Restaurants battle for breakfast
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- Figure 1: Segment visitation for breakfast, April 2016
- Most consumers eat breakfast at home
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- Figure 2: Breakfast food purchased in the past three months, April 2016
- The opportunities
- Half of consumers are ordering breakfast more compared to a year ago
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- Figure 3: Away from home breakfast behavior changes from one year ago, April 2016
- Consumers are interested in a variety of new breakfast choices
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- Figure 4: Breakfast menu interest, generation, April 2016
- There is an opportunity for restaurants in the brunch occasion
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- Figure 5: Brunch statement agreement, April 2016
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Stable commodity prices makes breakfast profitable
- Don’t ignore Gen X and Boomers when making a breakfast menu
- Healthy breakfast items can satisfy rushed diners
Market Factors
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- Restaurant industry recovers from commodity crisis
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- Figure 6: Year-to-date changes in food prices, May 2016
- Millennials matter, but the wealth is with older consumers
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- Figure 7: Median household income, by age of householder, 2014
- Consumers want to eat healthfully but are stressed for time
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- Figure 8: Consumer opinions on healthful eating, NHCS Adult Study six-month Fall 2010-15
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- The competition over breakfast heats up
- Restaurants are providing options for whatever mood diners are in
- International cuisines are influencing breakfast menus
- Breakfast menus become succinct
What’s Working?
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- Breakfast becomes a QSR battleground
- Restaurants see opportunity with expanded beverage offerings
- Maintaining the balance between health and decadence
- Chorizo emerges as a new favorite breakfast meat
What’s Struggling?
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- More breakfast means more competition
What’s Next?
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- Moving beyond the breakfast burrito
- Making brunch mainstream
- Better as a bowl
- Eggs Benedict becomes a star dish
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- Figure 9: Eggs Benedict examples
- Any protein can be a “breakfast meat”
Breakfast/Brunch Restaurant Profiles
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- LSRs
- FSRs
MMI Analysis
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- Breakfast menus shrink and become international/regional
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- Figure 10: Incidence of items on menus, Q1 2013-Q1 2016
- Figure 11: Incidence cuisine type on breakfast/brunch menus, top 10 cuisine types, Q1 2013-Q1 2016
- Breakfast/brunch menu items
- Operators trade breakfast sandwiches for burritos/tacos
- Egg entrees
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- Figure 12: Menu item incidence on breakfast/brunch menus (top 10 dishes), Q1 2013-Q1 2016
- Pancakes, waffles, and baked goods
- Breakfast/brunch meats
- Breakfast/brunch dish ingredients
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- QSRs are the most popular segment for breakfast
- The incidence of ordering breakfast AHF is up
- There are multiple areas of opportunity for breakfast menus
- Consumers think highly of brunch
Breakfast Foods Consumed AH versus AFH
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- Breakfast foods are typically purchased for the home
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- Figure 13: Breakfast food purchased in the past three months, April 2016
- AFH breakfast purchasers
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- Figure 14: Breakfast food purchased at a foodservice establishment in the past three months, April 2016
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- Figure 15: Continued: Breakfast food purchased at a foodservice establishment in the past three months, April 2016
Important Breakfast Factors
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- Consumers want nutritious, affordable, and “real” breakfast foods
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- Figure 16: Important factors when choosing breakfast foods, April 2016
- Men and women value different factors when choosing breakfast foods
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- Figure 17: Important factors when choosing breakfast foods, by gender, April 2016
- Hispanics are interested in portable indulgent items
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- Figure 18: Important factors when choosing breakfast foods, by Hispanic origin, April 2016
Restaurant Visitation for Breakfast
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- QSRs are most visited segment for breakfast
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- Figure 19: Segment visitation for breakfast, April 2016
- Men are key consumers for c-stores
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- Figure 20: Convenience store visitation for breakfast, by gender, April 2016
- Restaurant visitation varies by age
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- Figure 21: Segment visitation for breakfast, by age, April 2016
- Middle class and affluent consumers dine at many different restaurants
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- Figure 22: Segment visitation for breakfast, by income, April 2016
- Rural diners are target market for QSRs
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- Figure 23: Segment visitation for breakfast, by area, April 2016
Restaurant Breakfast Changes in Behavior
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- Over half of consumers are ordering breakfast more compared to a year ago
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- Figure 24: AFH breakfast behavior changes from one year ago, April 2016
- Millennials are driving the growth of breakfast
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- Figure 25: AFH breakfast behavior changes from one year ago, by generation, April 2016
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- Figure 26: AFH breakfast behavior changes from one year ago, by generation, April 2016
- Parents are ordering breakfast more than non-parents
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- Figure 27: AFH breakfast behavior changes from one year ago, by parents and age April 2016
Breakfast Menu Interest
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- Healthy items, all-day breakfast and third wave coffee are areas of opportunity
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- Figure 28: Breakfast menu interest, April 2016
- Reach women through healthy options/all-day breakfast, appeal to men through coffee and better packaging
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- Figure 29: Breakfast menu interest, by gender and age, April 2016
- Baby Boomers are the most receptive to all-day breakfast
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- Figure 30: Breakfast menu interest, generation, April 2016
- Hispanics are key coffee drinkers
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- Figure 31: Breakfast menu interest, by Hispanic origin, April 2016
- Breakfast menu interest by segment visitors
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- Figure 32: Breakfast menu interest, by segment visitors, April 2016
Restaurants and Cage-Free Eggs
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- Who is the target audience for cage-free eggs?
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- Figure 33: Breakfast menu interest, entrees made with cage-free eggs, by select demographics, April 2016
Breakfast versus Brunch Menu Items
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- Savory entrees are best for brunch
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- Figure 34: Breakfast versus brunch item association, April 2016
Brunch Perceptions and Attitudes
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- Brunch is an area of opportunity for the restaurant industry
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- Figure 35: Brunch statement agreement, April 2016
- High-earning Boomers are key brunch consumers
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- Figure 36: Brunch statement agreement, by generation, April 2016
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- Figure 37: Brunch statement agreement, by age and income, April 2016
- Women respond to the social nature of brunch
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- Figure 38: Brunch statement agreement, by gender, April 2016
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Appendix – Consumer
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- Figure 39: Statement agreement, “I often don’t have time to eat/prepare healthy meals”, Fall 2010-Fall 2015
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- Figure 40: Statement agreement, “I am working at eating a well-balanced diet”, Fall 2010-Fall 2015
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