Full-Service Restaurants in Canada

PROSPECTS

Increased budget-consciousness and price hikes set to temper category expansion

While full-service restaurants in Canada continued to develop positively in 2019, growth rates for overall current value sales and transactions were down slightly on 2018. The slowdown was partly attributable to high levels of household debt, with increased budget-consciousness leading many consumers eat out less frequently.

Operators increasingly compelled to partner with third-party delivery apps

The popularity of third-party food delivery apps such as SkipTheDishes and UberEats has become a hugely important driver of growth in current value sales for full-service restaurants in Canada in recent years. Usage of such apps reached record levels in 2019, and looks set to continue rising throughout the forecast period.

Menu innovation by chains remains focused on healthier and ethnic dishes

As is the case across consumer foodservice, chained operators in full-service restaurants are updating their menus to keep pace with demographic and lifestyle changes in Canada. For instance, as the Canadian population becomes more diverse and consumers are exposed to foods from around the world via foreign travel and social media, more chains are now offering different types of ethnic cuisine.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Menu and packaging innovations central to strategic repositioning of Boston Pizza

Boston Pizza remained the leading chain in full-service restaurants in terms of transactions and value sales in 2019, and finished a close second – behind Pizza Hut – in terms of outlet numbers. The chain has recently sought to pivot away from its traditional “sports bar” positioning and promote Boston Pizza outlets as more inclusive establishments for groups to gather and share meals, with a particular focus on millennial families.

Recipe Unlimited Corp to create Anejo and Blanco Cantina franchises

While full-service restaurants in Canada remains highly fragmented, the category has witnessed a trend towards greater consolidation in recent years, with a number of larger players attempting to strengthen their positions via mergers and acquisitions. For example, in 2018 MTY Food Group Inc acquired Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc, owner of the Baton Rouge, Scores, Mike's and Pizza Delight brands.

Kelsey's adds meat-free Lightlife burgers to its menu

Like their counterparts in the limited-service category, several full-service restaurants chains added items made with plant-based meat substitutes to their menus in 2019. One of the most prominent examples was Recipe Unlimited Corp’s Kelsey's chain, which introduced a number of new burgers made with the Lightlife meat substitute brand.

Files are delivered directly into your account within a few minutes of purchase.