Your sector
With unique in-house expertise, extensive range, and insights and support, there’s never been a better time to take a fresh look at Brakes.
Insight-driven solutions
Pubs and their customers are affected by what’s happening in the wider economy and rapidly-changing consumer trends. We subscribe to market intelligence agencies including Mintel (economic data) MCA (foodservice market and sectors) and The Food People (new flavour and ingredient trends). Using this data, and our own customer feedback, we understand the factors affecting consumer tastes and dining patterns, and how these specifically affect the pub sector.
Consumer trends
When eating out of home, customers look for an authentic experience
Massive growth in demand for vegan dishes; vegetarian and gluten-free
Family dining a major reason to visit
Value Scrutiny is now an important mega-trend
Formal sit-down meals are in decline: growth in coffee shops and food-to-go indicates consumer need for speed, convenience and value
Breakfast growing by spend and becoming a wider morning meal
Responding to customer trends
With value, quality and consistency in place, your main opportunities lie in addressing the big consumer trends: premiumisation, focusing on value, and healthy eating. There are also broader opportunities around vegetarian, vegan and family dining.
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Premiumisation
Products to help you capture and retain customers by adding elements of provenance, innovation and ‘foodie culture’ to your menu.
- Products and recipes to help you introduce premium-style dishes to your menus, whatever your kitchen resources and skill levels
- Provenance on a wide range of products for menu appeal and standout
- British products to support the number-one cuisine style demanded by pub customers
- Making it easy for chefs to replicate premium-style dish styles at lower cost and skill levels
Focusing on value
Helping you ensure your customers feel they’re getting value for money while delivering the quality and consistency they demand
- Products to help hold or reduce your prices, or put on special offers, to capture and retain customers
- Over 4,000 Brakes own-brand products and solutions give quality, taste and consistency at lower prices
- Wide range and choice of entry-level components and solutions to match your individual price point
Vegetarian & Vegan
The trend towards plant-based diets, especially among young people, make this a genuine need and a great opportunity to attract and retain customers long-term
- Recipe recommendations for all meal occasions and price points
- More than 300 products suitable for vegans – the largest range in UK foodservice and growing all the time
- Over 2500 vegetarian products (excluding fresh produce)
- Products suitable for all kitchen facilities and skill levels, making it easy to respond to this vital trend
Healthy Eating & Lifestyles
Tapping into consumer trends around healthy eating and lifestyles by adding low-calorie and free-from dishes to support the ‘my health, my way’ agenda
- Accredited ingredients, products, recipes and advice
- Makes it easy to add free-from, low sugar/salt and reduced-calorie options to your menus
- All products and recipes include complete allergen and nutritional data
- Advice on serving customers seeking ‘healthy’ options and those with actual dietary needs
Family Dining
Families account for half of all dining in pubs; around 60% of these are families dining with children, making this a crucial customer group for you to capture and retain
- Products to help you offer families greater choice, more healthy options and an enhanced experience
- Recipe ideas and advice on creating children’s menus
- Pack sizes and formats making it easier to offer smaller portions
Foodie Culture
UK consumers are more aware of, and interested in, food trends than ever before. This has raised expectations in terms of innovative ingredients and flavour combinations, presentation and country of origin on menus. However, core suisine styles and flavours remain consistent: market research confirms British will be the biggest cuisine influence in 2020, closely followed by American; the ever-popular French and Italian cuisines look set to hold steady.