Quick-service restaurants are stealing share from bakery and coffee cafés. What can c-stores do to up their own baked goods game?
Technomic’s recent “Canadian Bakery & Coffee Café Consumer Trend Report” shows that bakery competition is fierce as more businesses look to gain share of stomach from hungry baked goods customers. Quick-serve restaurants (QSRs) are upping their game, and managing to steal shares from bakery and coffee cafés.
Meanwhile the cafés are expected to continue to thrive as they meet consumers’ demands for affordability and convenience while still providing the quality they demand. To stay ahead of the competition, these cafés are enhancing beverage programs, adding higher quality fare and integrating more technology to engage consumers and speed up operations. All things c-stores are also succeeding at.
“Cafés should highlight and continue to focus efforts on what sets them apart from others in the space, particularly quality, a better-for-you positioning and the overall experience,” said Kelly Weikel, director of consumer insights at Technomic. “But increased competition means they now also have to work harder at justifying price points, innovating their food and beverage lineups but still meeting consumer needs for convenience.”
The Canadian Bakery & Coffee Café Consumer Trend Report compiles consumer and menu data from Technomic’s proprietary Digital Resource Library and MenuMonitor resources, in addition to survey responses from more than 1,000 Canadian consumers.
The report’s findings include:
77% of consumers visit coffee cafés each month, and 34% visit bakery cafés as often.
42% of consumers visit bakery cafés because they enjoy the food while 17% say the same for coffee cafés.
Breads, such as bagels, English muffins and toast, account for 21% of baked goods at bakery cafés, followed by pastries (11%). Dessert bars top the baked goods at coffee cafés (14%), followed by bagels/English muffins/toast (10%).
The Canadian Bakery & Coffee Café Consumer Trend Report is one of many in Technomic’s Consumer Trend Report series, offering the most current analysis, insight and opportunities to help grow your business.
