OREANDA-NEWS. April 16, 2015. Canadian consumers continue to spend more and more at chain and branded restaurants, according to GE Capital’s annual Canadian Chain Restaurant Industry Review, an extensive research report on the state of chain foodservice in the country.

The report’s findings will be premiered at the sixth annual Canadian Restaurant Investment Summit May 5-6 in Toronto. See below for details.

Foodservice industry sales are expected to increase 4 percent to \\$59.8 billion in 2015. Diners spent more than \\$57.5 billion at commercial foodservice establishments in 2014, an increase of 4.9 percent over 2013 and equal to approximately 4 percent of the national gross domestic product.

Ontario and Quebec have the largest commercial foodservice sales at \\$22.2 billion and \\$10.5 billion, respectively, driven primarily by their larger populations. Per capita, Alberta has the largest commercial foodservice sales (\\$2,137), followed by British Columbia (\\$1,920). Quebec has the lowest commercial foodservice sales per capita (\\$1,278).

Nearly two-thirds (63.2 percent) of restaurant expenditures take place at chains, which include local, regional, national or international businesses. Those in Atlantic Canada spend the most at chain restaurants – 70 percent. Quebec has the greatest percentage of independent restaurant expenditures – 44.6 percent in 2014, down from 48.4 percent in 2013.

Highlights of Canadian Chain Restaurant Industry Review

The fourth annual Canadian Chain Restaurant Industry Review, a comprehensive analysis of the state of foodservice companies, will be premiered at the Canadian Restaurant Investment Summit. It includes the annual C-Suite Survey, conducted by fsSTRATEGY and NPD Group Canada.

The greatest opportunity in the foodservice industry today, according to C-Suite Survey participants, is menu innovation and refinement, followed by concept refinement.

“Foodservice industry leaders recognize the need to be dynamic in response to the ever more sophisticated consumer, with more choices, more customization, more segmented or targeted positioning, healthier options and better-quality ingredients and flavors,” said Edward Khediguian, senior vice president of GE Capital’s Franchise Finance business in Canada. “In addition, there’s an awareness of the reduction in the span of concept and segment life cycles. They see the value of trying new concepts, such as fast casual or premium options, to take advantage of the ongoing trend toward eating meals away from home.”

Similar to 2014, operating costs continue to be the single greatest challenge for survey participants. However, in 2015, cost of goods sold was mentioned as a challenge by more respondents. The rising cost of proteins was cited frequently, as well. Labour costs and productivity were mentioned at the same frequency as in 2014.

Sixth Annual Canadian Restaurant Investment Summit

Registration is open for the Canadian Restaurant Investment Summit, which brings together chain executives, franchise operators, investors, lenders and key suppliers from across the country for meaningful insights and a tight focus that’s uniquely Canadian.

The roster of well-known speakers includes:

  • Curt Steinhorst of The Center for Generational Kinetics, who’ll teach business leaders to handle the generational divide -- ranging from Millennials to Baby Boomers -- with both employees and customers.
  • Robert Carter, executive director of NPD Group, and Todd S. Jones, senior managing director of brand management for GE Capital’s U.S. Franchise Finance business, who’ll discuss actionable ideas to execute over the next 12 months to drive business.
  • JP Soltesz, a senior GE economist, who’ll talk about the impact of oil prices on the restaurant industry and provide a regional economic overview.

For more information, go to http://www.restaurantinvest.ca/. To keep up with conference news, follow along on Twitter (http://twitter.com/CRIS_Toronto).

About GE Capital, Canada

With 17 offices throughout Canada, GE Capital (www.gecapital.ca) offers a wide variety of financial products and services to address commercial financing across many phases of a business' lifecycle. From equipment finance to working capital and growth financing to large asset-based and restructuring loans, we apply our 30 years of experience in the Canadian market and our wealth of industry expertise to develop custom solutions for businesses. Some of the industries in which we specialize include transportation, construction, manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, mining, energy, wholesale, retail, and restaurant and hotel franchise financing.

GE Capital’s Franchise Finance business is a leading lender to the Canadian restaurant and hospitality industries. We specialize in financing regional and national restaurant businesses of all sizes across the country. In the past 12 years, we’ve financed more than 750 restaurant customers with upwards of 1,525 property locations. That’s in excess of \\$1.35 billion invested in the Canadian restaurant space. In the Canadian hotel market, we provide financing for nationally known brands in the limited-service and select-service segments of the industry. GE Capital offers customers around the globe an array of financial products, services and insights to help them grow their businesses.

GE (NYSE: GE) imagines things others don’t, builds things others can’t and delivers outcomes that make the world work better. GE brings together the physical and digital worlds in ways no other company can. In its labs and factories and on the ground with customers, GE is inventing the next industrial era to move, power, build and cure the world. www.ge.com