Hive to Honey

Boomers have lost the most in terms of retirement and savings, and they have very different spending parameters today,” Lisa Feigen Dugal, PricewaterhouseCoopers U.S. retail and consumer practice leader, tells Marketing Daily. “Gen Y, and to a degree, Gen X, have disposable income in a way Boomers don’t. And they spend very differently. They are [...]

There are other things Americans are doing or have considered doing in the past six months to save some money:
Almost half (45%) say they are brown bagging lunch instead of purchasing it, with 8% having considered doing so; 34% say this is not applicable to them;
Two in five (39%) are going to the hairdresser/barber/stylist less [...]

Choice Hotels CEO Steve Joyce the other day about his impressions of the 8th annual Americas Lodging Investment Summit, the hotel industry’s first big gathering of the year that was held last week in San Diego. During the summit, industry leaders agreed that 2010 will be better than 2009. For consumers, that means that rates [...]

Chief Executive William J. DeLaney said he was “encouraged” by Sysco’s performance in the quarter. “While the business environment remains challenging, deflation pressures appear to be moderating from highs we saw early in the quarter, and case volume trends continue to improve.”
Like other food players, Sysco suffered dragging bottom lines and profit margins in 2008 [...]

Industry leaders say consumers are dining out less and when they do, they’re spending less.

“Historically, the restaurant industry neither leads the economy into or out of periods of economic downturns,” said Bonnie Riggs, NPD’s restaurant industry analyst and author of the report. “This recession is generally believed to be more severe than those in recent history, and this time the industry not only realized traffic losses, consumer spending declined [...]

in 2009, economic ugliness caught up with fast food. Customer traffic steadily declined through the year, and by the fourth quarter even McDonald’s, which had held up best against the deluge, was experiencing a sales decline in U.S. outlets open at least 13 months. This year, the Golden Arches’ stock has been a clear laggard, [...]

As the holiday season hits its stride, consumers are poised to spend, according to Deloitte’s recently released Consumer Spending Index. A 4.63 percent increase in November, after a 4.25-point gain in October, is the highest level the index has reached since 2004.
The index — which tracks consumer cash flow in sectors including tax burden, initial [...]

Key Findings:
* Falling employment levels tend to depress demand for snacking during work
commutes, which has a particular impact on sweet and savoury snacks sales.
* Health considerations continue to matter for consumers despite economic
volatility, as seen with the resilience of snack bars in both developing and
developed regions alike.
* Manufacturer or retailer led price promotions have been [...]

Since 2001, the number of so-called “casual dining” restaurants in the U.S. has grown 14 percent, according to market research firm NPD Group. The number of chain restaurants in the category has grown by more than 26 percent.
That growth may have been simply too ambitious, and now there’s quiet speculation that some chains may not [...]