Like the broader foodservice industry, hotel food and beverage operations are being impacted by consumers’ needs for speed and convenience when taking food on the go. With sales in the lodging foodservice segment forecasted to decline by more than 8 percent in 2009, F&B managers should be looking at all opportunities to build incremental growth. Recent research among hotel foodservice consumers indicates that guests are looking for more ways to obtain snacks and beverages. In response, hotels are offering more options, including lobby kiosks and carts, convenience store offerings, and even vending machines.

While the major focus for most properties has been on building and supporting restaurants, lounges, and banquet and catering, savvy operations are realizing the incremental benefit of offering more grab ‘n’ go fare. About one-third of hotel properties report seeing opportunities in grab ‘n’ go prepackaged meals, and a similar number indicate that grab ‘n’ go business is on the rise. In addition to high potential customer demand for these products, snack and beverage outlets usually have a high profit margin and require much less labor than freshly prepared food.

As hotel properties evaluate opportunities with grab ‘n’ go items and initiatives, several factors should be considered:

• Pricing: Consumers generally have a set price they’re willing to pay for grab ‘n’ go items, but they’ve also said this price is relative to the situation or mood. Many times, having a wide variety of items available means consumers reduce the decision to price, but hotel operators may be able to charge a premium for added convenience, uniqueness, or healthfulness.
  
• Daypart: Most grab ‘n’ go items are sold in the morning (think coffee and some type of breakfast bar). Consumer needs for grab ‘n’ go items change throughout the day. The “snack daypart” tends to be mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Likewise, consumers expect different items at different times of the day. Mid-afternoon snacks tend to be more soft drink, potato chip, and candy oriented. Late evening occasions, on the other hand, tend to be more ice cream and cookie oriented.
  
• Location: Hotels have a unique opportunity to offer consumers a grab ‘n’ go option, much more so than most full-service (and even some limited-service) restaurants. The lobby is an obvious place to build grab ‘n’ go business, but we’ve also seen opportunities such as placing refrigerated display cases outside hotel restaurants, offering ready-to-eat items for the harried and hurried traveler.
  
• Impulse: Most snack/grab ‘n’ go occasions are unplanned, and consumers are looking for a quick solution. Once again, convenience is a major factor in a hotel property capturing this snacking occasion.
  
• Type of guest: Leisure consumers tend to be more inclined toward snacking occasions of all types, including purchases from vending machines, snack/beverage kiosks, and lobby gift shops.
  
  This year is shaping up to be a challenging one for hotel foodservice. Incremental sales driven by grab ‘n’ go items can help offset some of the drop in spending in other areas and is a relatively easy method that is on-trend with consumer demand.
  
  David Henkes is a VP at Technomic, a Chicago-based consultancy focused on away-from-home eating and drinking. For more information on food and beverage trends in foodservice or on other issues, please contact David at 312-506-3927 or at dhenkes@technomic.com.