U.S. Restaurant Chain Transaction Declines Improve Into Single-Digits for the First Time Since March
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., Aug. 27, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In the week ending August 16, customer transaction declines at major restaurant chains improved into the single-digits after 21 weeks of double-digit declines, reports The NPD Group. Customer transactions were down -9% in week ending August 16 compared to year ago, a +35-point gain from the steepest decline of -44% in week ending April 12, according to NPD's CREST® Performance Alerts, which provides a rapid weekly view of chain-specific transactions and share trends for 75 quick service, fast casual, midscale, and casual dining chains representing 53% of the commercial restaurant traffic in U.S.
Customer transactions at major quick service restaurant chains, which represent the bulk of industry transactions, were down -8% compared to year ago in the week ending August 16. Full service chain restaurants, which were most impacted by the mandated dine-in closures that are slowly being lifted, realized customer transactions declines of -19% versus year ago, a +57-point gain from the steepest decline of -76% in week ending April 12 compared to year ago.
"Although transactions are still down, the move into the single-digits is a positive sign for the U.S. restaurant industry," says David Portalatin, NPD food industry advisor and author of Eating Patterns in America. "Although we're stuck in neutral for now, I firmly believe there is still a lot of upside recovery for restaurants. My belief is rooted in one reality: consumers are not willing to give up on the convenience and experience a restaurant meal brings to them and their families regardless of the barriers."
-30-
About The NPD Group, Inc.
NPD offers data, industry expertise, and prescriptive analytics to help our clients grow their businesses in a changing world. Over 2,000 companies worldwide on us to help them measure, predict, and improve performance across all channels, including brick-and-mortar and e-commerce. We have offices in 27 cities worldwide, with operations spanning the Americas, Europe, and APAC. Practice areas include apparel, appliances, automotive, beauty, books, B2B technology, consumer technology, e-commerce, fashion accessories, food consumption, foodservice, footwear, home, juvenile products, media entertainment, mobile, office supplies, retail, sports, toys, video games, and watches. For more information, visit npd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @npdgroup.
SOURCE The NPD Group
