2024 has come and mostly gone, offering another mixed bag of results for an industry still trying to find solid footing after a tumultuous few years.
While 2024 did not bear witness to any major calamity, it also didn’t boast a big recovery that industry watchers have expected now for four years. Instead, stubbornly high inflation finally became too much for many consumers, who pulled back on restaurant spending and forced chains big and small to roll out discounted products and value messaging.
So if 2024 was the year of tumbling traffic and desperate marketing, then what should restaurant operators expect from 2025? Could there be reason for optimism, or will we struggle through yet another disappointing year?
NRN’s Ron Ruggless looks deeper into the crystal ball to see which operational and marketing trends the industry might see next year.
