Quick-service restaurants (QSRs) such as McDonald’s and Burger King have long been an important staple in American dining. But a new report suggests things are changing.
While there are some positive aspects to the QSR industry like convenience and affordability, there are also significant challenges facing the industry.
Even though the major players have tried to woo customers back with value meals, they may have made that play too late. Customers may feel they still have to face rising prices, shrinking portions, and declining satisfaction, plus the original fast-food giants are being confronted with a new generation of “fast casual” restaurants challenging their supremacy.
The latest new Harris Poll-QuestBrand QSR & Fast Casual survey reveals that the majority of Americans frequent QSRs, with 52% ordering from them at least once a week. Frequent diners tend to be younger (65% of 18-34-year-olds) and more often male (52%) or people of color (59%).
What drives these people is mainly price. Only 32% of consumers find QSRs affordable these day, and 81% say they’re none too happy that prices are higher than a year ago.
Shrinkflation is also a concern, but only for 35% of customers. In the minds of QSR customers, the majority believe that between $5 and $9.99 is the sweet spot for a meal, despite these challenges.
However, the Harris researchers found that men are typically willing to accept a higher meal price than women. Four-in-10 (38%) men say that $10-$14.99 is a fair price for a full meal, versus 29% of women.
QSR diners aren’t digging the in-restaurant scene like they once were, either. With chains pushing drive-thrus like crazy, their customers have had to either suck it up or go somewhere else.
One-fifth (18%) of U.S. adults say that they avoid eating inside QSRs because they dislike the in-restaurant experience (e.g., atmosphere, cleanliness) – a metric especially true for women (22%) versus men (14%).
The winners and the losers
The smartest cookie among the QSRs appears to be Subway. After Subway added a Footlong Cookie to its menu for only $5 back in January, demand for the cookie – 5 million between January and May – exceeded the company’s ability to fulfill orders, and the cookie had to be temporarily removed from Subway’s app and delivery purchase options.
“After almost four months of hiatus as Subway tweaked their cookie supply chain, the Footlong Cookie reemerged full force in May. Since then, the cookie has been available for sale in-store, through the app, and through the chain’s delivery partners,” Harris researchers noted.
Regionally, though, it’s a mixed bag. Using brand equity data from QuestBrand, Harris ranked casual restaurant chains that over-index with each region: urban, suburban, and rural. Only one -- Qdoba -- emerged as a favorite in more than one region.
What's behind these chains’ success? "Underpinning these regional QSR rankings are big differences in demographics, with urban consumers being the youngest and most ethnically diverse,” QuestBrand’s managing director Justin Pincus, told ConsumerAffairs. Pincus said that given their early-adopter tendencies, it's no surprise that newer brands like Blaze and Marcos are doing well with this demographic.
“Meanwhile, suburban consumers over-index on popular fast casual spots, such as Panera and Chick-fil-A, while rural consumers, skewing oldest and least ethnically diverse, lean into tried-and-true, nostalgic brands: DQ, Subway, Pizza Hut."