It’s no secret. Your customers like variety. It’s the reason you offer so many different beverage and entrée choices on your menu. The same holds true with French fries. According to Lamb Weston, if you offer more choices, you’ll satisfy more customers, build your fry sales and increase your profitability. And the evidence is more compelling than ever.
In partnership with the renowned foodservice research firm, Datassential, Lamb Weston recently conducted an extensive nationwide study of consumer French fry preferences and foodservice operator experiences. Well over 1,200 consumers and 300 commercial foodservice operators from all across the country were asked in-depth questions about their French fry experiences. They asked consumers from all backgrounds about their dining habits, their French fry preferences and how strong those preferences were. They looked into the operator’s perspective. What benefits does a multi-fry menu provide? What are the challenges? What they found could surprise you.
One fry does NOT fit all.
Consumers are very particular about fries. In fact, 80% of them prefer certain fry varieties over others. But surprisingly, only 55% prefer straight cut fries, the predominant cut style on menus today. That means nearly one-half of your customers would make another choice – if it was offered.
Your fry menu determines their venue.
Nearly 50% of consumers said they sometimes choose a restaurant based on the type of fries it serves.
Adding a second fry adds to profitability!
Take a look at the chart below. This is an actual example of how one QSR chain increased fry sales by adding a specialty cut fry to create a multi-fry menu. Simply adding another fry choice to the menu resulted in a marked increase in fry sales and a growth in gross French fry profits of over 28%.
How you can get started
1) Start with your current fry and add more options that appeal to consumers in your market.
Go to ampliFRY.com to find fry styles most preferred by customers in your market.
2) Charge a premium price for a specialty cut fry to further increase your margins.
3) Promote your variety on your website, social media, text clubs, crew buttons and table tents.
4) Get your staff excited and trained on the best ways to suggest a fry upgrade to customers before they order. Run a wait staff promotion to push upgrade orders to help your new fries gain traction.
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