An article from Horizons

Statistical Model of the Foodservice Sector from Horizons

The foodservice sector consists of over 260,000 outlets, of which 125,000 are operated by groups (operations having five or more outlets with a degree of centralised purchasing specification and control).

The traditional way to define and measure the market is by using “sector types” such as restaurants, hotels, pubs etc. These types are, on the whole, a relatively easy way of defining the market, but companies are finding that thinking in these terms can constrain creative market development. Accordingly, some companies are looking at the market in terms of factors such as: qualifications of kitchen staff, degree of centralised menu control or use of specific types of equipment. One of the most useful definitions is on the basis of size – specifically the numbers of meals served. On this basis, 31% of all outlets (81,000) serve fewer than 200 meals a week, while 7% serve more than 2,000 meals a week.

FDF has developed a partnership with Horizons, a company that specialises in providing market intelligence to the foodservice sector. Horizons has over 20 years' worth of industry information, and has developed the “Horizons Database” model of the UK foodservice sector which it uses to provide statistics. These statistics are designed to help companies understand their current position within the market, how it is developing and what they need to do in order to achieve corporate objectives. They can also be used as a forecasting tool, using past trends to forecast the future and executive input, to interrogate forecasts.

The complete Horizons Database model consists of over 160,000 stats for 100 sectors and subsectors – analysed by a host of variables. However Horizons has agreed to publish selected extracts (pdf, 199kb) specifically for users of the Out of Home Group website.

Selected Extracts from Horizons Database Data (pdf version, 262kb); (xls version, 61kb)
Includes:

Numbers of outlets

Numbers of meals

Cold Drink Purchases

Food Purchases

Consumer Sales

Outlet size

Average Meal Price

Horizons Database

Visit Horizons website or contact Peter Backman on +44 (0)20 8349 0162.