Mike Hohnen

Coaching for personal growth, change and development

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Pickerman?s The Original Soup Cafe

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Home base: Cedar Falls, Iowa
Units: 40 original; 1 new prototype
Seats: 50 to 70
Check average: $7
Average unit volume: $875,000
Growth plans: 3 more in 2003, then controlled growth through multi-unit operators
Web site: www.pickermans.com
Why watch it?: Innovative dinner offerings and soup focus should bode well for business.

Pickerman?s The Original Soup Cafe?the new, fast-casual incarnation of Pickerman?s Soup and Sandwich Shop?kicks menu and atmosphere up a notch to keep customers coming in both noon and night.

[Read more…] about Pickerman?s The Original Soup Cafe

Supermarket industry gears up….

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As away-from-home meal spending continues to intensify, the supermarket industry gears up.

With “quick” and “convenient” the latest bywords, shoppers are increasingly choosing time over money, especially at mealtime. Whether it’s picking up a pizza on the way home from work, ordering takeout from a local eatery, or swinging by the supermarket deli, consumers are eating more meals away from home than ever before.

And if the latest government research proves correct, we ain’t seen nothing yet. According to a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture report, Food Expenditures by U.S. Households: Looking Ahead to 2020, consumer spending on away-from-home meals will increase 8.1 percent over the next two decades, good news indeed for the nation’s existing successful prepared foods leaders.

Source: Progressive Grocer 10/15/2003

US Pool poll measures full-service restaurant takeout trends

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This clipping confirms what i have been ‘preaching’ for a while now. The next big competitor for restaurants is not new restaurants but new formats in supermarket. The following clipping from Progressive Grocer; 10/15/2003, Vol. 82 Issue 15, p42, 3p, 2c clearly show that syupermarket are aware of the fact that meals are increasing a moving from food retail to Food service:

“Because takeout continues to be an increasingly important dining option for Americans, supermarket retailers seeking to better connect with customers should pay attention to the latest research by the National Restaurant Association (NRA).

[Read more…] about US Pool poll measures full-service restaurant takeout trends

Are you providing ONLINE OXYGEN?

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These days, consumers don’t want online access anywhere/anytime, they absolutely CRAVE it! From airports to living rooms to roof gardens to classrooms to city parks, people go to great lengths to get a dose of what TRENDWATCHING.COM has dubbed ONLINE OXYGEN. Seven years after the first web sites started popping up, and email made its way from science labs to office desks and living rooms, 600 million consumers worldwide are beginning to see online access as an absolute necessity, and there are no signs that the pace of integrating online access into daily life is slowing down.

Some global figures: [Read more…] about Are you providing ONLINE OXYGEN?

Amen….

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?These days people want
what?s real. The ?90s were
all about exuberance, but
now it?s authenticity.?

Kid focus…

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Did I miss something or are we not tuned in to kids – yet – in the European hotel business?

Hotels Very Accommodating Toward Kids
This year, as Americans plan their annual summer vacations, they?re
most likely to revert to the vacation they took as kids ? the family road
trip. A recent survey by CoolSavings and Rand McNally found that the
road trip is the top choice for vacationers this year (70%). And there?s
never been a better time to travel as a family because, as Child
magazine recently reported, more and more hotel chains are offering
activities and amenities for kids::
? Embassy Suites ? Offers kids fun premiums from partner Nickelodeon
? Loews ? Features cute kid-size furniture and welcomes family pets
? Four Seasons ? Welcomes kids with a free snack, offers free kid movies
? Wyndham ? Lets parents pre-register favorite activities, toys and snacks
? Holiday Inn ? Provides kids with free rubber frog bath toy and
fun-filled activity room
? Westin ? Pampers kids with holistic skincare items and popular
bedtime stories
? Sheraton ? Has fun activities like lei-making, horseback riding and
movies and s?mores around a bonfire
? Hilton ? Features regional activities such as panning for gold and
salsa-making in the Southwest
? Hyatt ? Free glow-in-the-dark Frisbee, scavenger and sea-shell
hunts and dive-in movies that can be viewed by the pool
? The Ritz-Carlton ? Provides themed kiddie teas, teddy bear
tuck-ins and butler-drawn baths
? Omni ? Free Omni Kids Bag of activities, kid-friendly food and
fun contests

Source: Buzz

Branded Brands…

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Marriot & Bulgari – Smart Car & IPod – Nickelodeon partnering with Holiday Inn Hotelsis all examples of this new trend reported in trendwatch.com

Despite some doom and gloom predictions for brands in general (too expensive, too much media saturation), branded goods remain as hot as ever. Certain focused and well respected brands, often beacons of coolness and quality, are now cashing in by enriching other, more all-encompassing brands. The result: BRANDED BRANDS.

In plain English: BRANDED BRANDS means you will get a pizza from Pizzeria Uno on an American Airlines flight. And onboard perks offered by United Airlines include Starbucks Coffee, Mrs. Fields Cookies and even a McDonald?s ?Friendly Skies Meal?, including the ubiquitous promo-toy.

When you check into your Westin Hotel, expect the beauty products to come from premium brand Aveda. Le Meridien adds to its appeal with luxurious Hermes toiletries. These days, lifestyle magazines even include this kind of information in their hotel reviews.

Cars aren?t immune either: Lexus proudly promotes their Mark Levinson audio systems. And when dining out, don?t be surprised to find Haagen-Dazs ice-cream on the menu of even upscale restaurants. It all points to consumers on the road increasingly wanting to find the brands they trust and enjoy at home (United Airlines? in-board coffee approval shot up to 87% when it introduced Starbucks).

Up to marketers to decide whether they represent a brand that should be branded, or own a brand that puts the ?branded? into others! [Read more…] about Branded Brands…