From the growth of independent coffee shops and rise of affordable gourmet foods, the street food revolution and on-going popularity of TV chefs and The Great British Bake Off, ‘Foodie’ culture is truly booming. Ten years ago you certainly wouldn’t have seen artisanal products used in supermarket in-store bakeries but now they are commonplace as rustic homemade loaves of all shapes, flavours and toppings line the shelves.
This all of course affects foodservice outlets, as consumers are expecting to get more for their money when eating out. Whilst many are still being careful with their hard-earned cash, they’re still willing to spend if it means getting an experience they can’t create at home. The quality of food is now the most important factor (79%) for consumers when deciding where to eat out and, according to Mintel research, half of all diners order something they don’t or can’t cook at home.
To make the most of important sales opportunities, outlets have to adjust and ensure their offering is both relevant and moving with the ‘Foodie’ times. Small changes in offerings can make a huge difference in answering customer demands – just look at how the humble burger is evolving and being ‘gourmet-ified’ year on year. We recently launched a brioche bun for a far more visually and flavour appealing burger serve, and this has proved a big hit.
Consumers are now also travelling more than ever and are increasingly demanding these worldly flavours more locally, which are over and beyond traditional ‘Indian’ and ‘Chinese’ options. These generic regional cuisines are being replaced by the more exotic and specific, for example Peruvian, Vietnamese and Korean.
World flavours is also a key area of interest for us at Delice de France and we’re always looking to build our offering of authentic ethnic flavours. Most recently we joined forces with Levi Roots to launch delicious chicken and beef pasties, and we also launched a number of products influenced by popular yet authentic Indian flavours, such as our mini Indian selection.
Outlets should also think about being experimental and take time to review seasonal flavours within their menus. My top flavour tip for next year is South American and we will be exploring the delicious flavours of the continent with a portfolio of new products next year.
As well as new flavour trends, we’ve also seen a rise in the popularity of more interesting breads. In fact, the increase in demand for speciality breads has grown 8.2% since 2010 , outperforming the overall bread and baked goods market . For cafés and outlets that are looking to maximise on the grab and go opportunity – adding a delicious and varied range of flavoured breads and wraps is a great way of doing so. Even within our more traditional workplace catering customers, seeded and brown breads have overtaken the plain white carrier as the preferred option for sandwiches.
At Delice de France, we truly live and breathe food and are obsessed with finding out what’s the next biggest product and trend to ensure we’re offering our customers the best, most relevant range. In this difficult and competitive market place, I’d urge all outlets to look at their current offerings and see what’s happening in their local area to ensure they are both ahead of the curve and standing out from the crowd.