More Articles By Mary Boltz Chapman, Editor-in-Chief
- Share and Share Alike
As consumers pull back on spending and dine out less often, maybe now is the best time to share best practices with other restaurant chains. More - Customers Demand Best Food at the Best Price
It's the food, stupid. It's also the cleanliness, value, service and menu variety, as Restaurants & Institutions' Consumers' Choice in Chains reveals in detail. The annual research not only shows which chains consumers visit most often and rate the highest, it also reveals what makes up those dining decisions. More - Food Allergies: Welcoming Intolerance
Restaurant chains such as Red Robin and Biaggi's are cultivating a loyal base of customers with food allergies by offering allergen-free menus, providing information about those menus on their Web sites, and training staff to accommodate their needs. More - Supply Chain Technology: Made to Order
Church's Chicken has added a module to its Internet-based supply-chain system that automates invoice entry, saving time at the restaurant and mistakes at the distributor. More - Supply Chain Software Aids Quality and Safety
"Eat Fresh" is its slogan, and the supply chain takes it seriously. Subway uses its Internet-based supply-management system to not only bring product into its stores but to give all steps in the supply chain visibility into the process to ensure it's safe and consistent. More - Video Contest Taps Chick-fil-A's Biggest Fans
Chick-fil-A is well-known for its billboards featuring cows asking customers to eat chicken. Long a buyer of traditional advertising, the Atlanta-based, 1,400-unit quick-service restaurant chain took a step into the World Wide Web with its Biggest Fan video contest. More - Research Report: Keep Customers Coming
This year the question is more relevant than ever: How do you get more customers coming through the doors? Operators use many methods, from sending an e-mail newsletter to a small group of loyal guests to airing a national television campaign. But which methods are the best investments? More - For the Defense
If I had a nickel for every time I heard or read someone say, “I don’t eat in chains,” I could take you out to a nice dinner at Morton’s. First of all, they are obviously lying or incredibly ignorant. Come on—no Starbucks, no McDonald’s, no Olive Garden, ever? Impossible. More - Over the Counter: Takeout Trends
Dinner comprises 54.8 percent of fast-food users' carryout occasions, according to a 21-quarter average from Quick-Track, a quarterly survey by San Clemente, Calif.-based Sandelman & Associates. The evening meal makes up 48.4 percent of all QSR users' most recent purchase occasions. More - Driving Traffic: Mix and Match
From sending an e-mail newsletter to a small group of loyal customers to running new menu specials, restaurant chains are combining different tactics to increase customer counts. Chain Leader’s exclusive Driving Traffic research. More - Listen In: Wingstop Gives Flying Lessons
In July Wingstop celebrated its 20th consecutive quarter of comparable-store-sales increases—not a common feat in ordinary times. Listen in as James Flynn, president and CEO of the 400-unit, Dallas-based chicken-wing concept, shares what keeps Wingstop growing. More - Portfolio Manager Askar Brands
Askar Brands, parent of quick-service restaurant chains Papa Romano’s, Mr. Pita and Stucchi’s, is preparing to compete on a global level in the next five years. The company has brought in big-gun executives, refined the concepts, offered co-branding options and recruited area developers. More - Consumer Trends: Bar Business
The Nielsen Company reported that nearly half of consumers surveyed said the economy has had no impact on the amount they spend on beer, wine or spirits; less than 20 percent say there has been a significant impact. A look at alcoholic-beverage consumption trends. More - Quick-Service Customers: Out to Lunch
You'll find more quick-service customers eating in the restaurant at lunch than at other meals. According to Quick-Track, a quarterly survey by San Clemente, Calif.-based research firm Sandelman & Associates, 36.8 percent of all fast-food users having lunch on their last QSR occasion ate inside the restaurant. More - What Do You Think?
I'm sure you've seen the changes in the magazine since the beginning of the year. After comprehensive reader research, we changed the editorial position and redesigned the pages to better respond to reader needs. Now we'd like to hear from our readers about how we're doing. More - Ready or Not: Crisis Management
A crisis can hit even the best food-safety system. Chains can minimize the damage with a good crisis-management plan that includes putting together a cross-functional team and a communications protocol. More - Voice of Experience: Crisis-Management Lessons from Wendy's
Denny Lynch has learned a lot about crisis management in his 28 years at Wendy’s, some of it the hard way. The senior vice president of communications and frequent company spokesman tells Chain Leader in his own words about lessons learned from recent experiences. More - What's it Worth to You?
Whether it be a vacation, a restaurant meal or a garage-sale find, the question consumers are asking first these days is, “Is it worth it?” More - Flight Delays Keep Vacationers at Home
Will 2008 be the year of the “staycation,” where Americans spend their days off in their own backyard? The Travel Industry Association released a survey in May that said people are so frustrated with air travel that they avoided 41 million trips over the prior 12 months. More - Franchisor-Franchisee Relationship Counseling
Since Clarice Turner joined Vancouver, Wash.-based Papa Murphy's as president and chief operating officer in spring 2007, she's been putting her operations background to work targeting consistency and efficiency. Chain Leader spoke with Turner about how Papa Murphy's works with franchisees on cost pressures and more. More
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