Food: By the Numbers

Food--fast, slow, casual, takeout, sit-down, delivery--is by far the largest single sector in franchising. One look at our Mega 99 list of the country's largest franchisees shows their choice of brands dominated by food, primarily QSR. Beyond the sheer size of this sector, changing consumer tastes are spurring the creation of new brands, even in a belt-tightening economy. We asked two well-respected market researchers--Technomic and FRANdata--for data that would provide a big picture overview of the franchised food segment--where it's been and where it might be trending.

FRANdata:
Tracking Food Brand Growth

As of 2011, there are about 1,200 franchised food brands operating in the U.S.; roughly two thirds began offering franchises in 2000 or later. By far, the largest segment in food is QSR, which accounts for 92 percent of franchised units in the sector.

Between 2004 and 2010, the number of franchised food locations increased at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4% to almost 160,000. Brands selling baked goods grew the fastest at a CAGR of 8% over the period, followed by sit-down restaurants (4%), brands selling fast food (3%), and brands that offer frozen dessert products (1%)

QSR

Sit-Down Restaurants

The largest sit-down restaurant concepts include Applebee's with more than 1,500 franchised locations in the U.S., followed by Denny's (1,300+) and IHOP (1,100+). (both owned by DineEquity).

Technomic:
Tracking Food Sectors by Growth

The following are menu segments expected to exceed the industry's overall growth rate in 2011 (which Technomic is currently forecasting at a nominal 2.5%).

Limited-Service Segments

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