The Future Of Fast Food

I have a confession: I eat a lot of fast food. Our office is perfectly located next to a major mall with many, many restaurants and restaurants with drive-thru's nearby. It's not something I'm proud of, but let's not get into that. While researching commercial real estate trends (that's what I call scrolling through Twitter at work), I came across this article. Taco Bell Defy wreaked havoc in the Sites USA office, and across the internet. If you haven't seen the concept images, Taco Bell says it:

As commercial real estate professionals, those of us at Sites USA think a lot about the future of the industry and the impact our software can, and will, have. As a member of the marketing department, my immediate thought after reading this article was “Taco Bell needs to see our Traffic Count data”. I promise this isn't a sales pitch, (but it could be!) so let's get into it.

REGIS Online has a lot of different data, but I think one of the least utilized data sets is traffic data like Traffic Counts or Drive Times. With more restaurants - and other retailers - moving their priorities to online or mobile ordering, it seems like traffic data will only become more valuable. Clearly, it's never been more important to be on the “right side” of the street.

Change Is Coming To Fast Food.
Are You Ready For It?

I believe Defy is just the beginning of a new era in fast food. More and more restaurants are building or redesigning their locations to optimize food delivery services. Almost every major restaurant has an app available for easy ordering (and loyalty programs) or is partnered with a delivery service like Postmates, GrubHub, and Uber Eats.

Think of Chipotle: their app allows customers to “skip the line” with pickup in-store or a dedicated “Chipotlanes” drive-thru in some locations. Over the past few years, restaurants - fast-food and fast-casual - have been announcing new restaurant concepts with no dining room or counter. KFC launched their pilot store in late-2020, as well as PF Changs. Even my personal favorite, Portillos, is launching its first pick-up only location soon. Chick-Fil-A is redesigning drive-thrus to include two lanes all the way to the window.

However, this new concept isn't just for the restaurant world. Almost every retail store has a “Buy Online - Pick Up In-Store” option for online shoppers. I've used Walmart and Target's pickup options when I needed something quick. Both are major players in the Discount Department Store category, and both have been renovating or re-allocating space in their stores to be able to accommodate the recent influx of online orders. Even malls have pickup areas in their parking lots or in centralized areas inside for quicker, easier shopping. This tech isn't going anywhere anytime soon, and it seems like retailers are choosing to adjust to their customer's use.

Like my taste in food, the commercial real estate industry is always changing. But, whether I'm ordering through an app on my phone or at the counter in a store, new tech will always be part of the experience. •

Last Modified May 20, 2022