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Luxury apparel retailers have long been central to the holiday experience, carrying premium gifts for the special people in our lives and offering intricate window displays to admire while out and about. And more recently, thrift stores have also entered the holiday shopping conversation as budget-conscious and sustainability-minded consumers increasingly turn to this segment.
We dove into the data for the luxury apparel and thrift store segments to explore the trends defining each space this holiday season.
Bifurcation in apparel, which has been one of the defining themes of 2025, remains a factor during the holiday season thus far. Many consumers continue to prioritize value as inflation weighs on household budgets, while high-end segments are sustained by affluent shoppers less affected by near-term economic headwinds.
The graph below shows the latest visit trends for thrift stores and luxury apparel retailers, highlighting this bifurcation. Thrift stores have posted consistent double-digit visit growth through the second half of 2025, suggesting that economic pressure, sustainability concerns, and the appeal of the treasure-hunt experience are pushing more consumers toward secondhand shopping. And even though thrift store visits don’t generally surge during the holidays (consumers, it seems, prefer gifting from traditional retail channels), Black Friday traffic to the segment surged this year – highlighting the category's growth potential this holiday season.
At the same time, luxury retailers are also maintaining their footing, outperforming traditional apparel. With the exception of a few softer months, luxury visits have hovered near or above 2024 levels for most of the year, as higher-income shoppers continue to stabilize the segment’s performance.
With the core holiday period in full swing, both ends of the apparel spectrum appear positioned to succeed in the current bifurcated retail landscape.
The bifurcation in apparel and its impact on consumer behavior becomes even more apparent when analyzing the trade area median household income (HHI) of the thrift and luxury segments.
The chart below shows that since 2022, the median HHI of luxury apparel retailers’ captured markets has continued to rise – reinforcing the category’s growing dependence on higher-income shoppers as prices climb and more aspirational consumers shift to other segments.
And this trend is also impacting holiday consumer dynamics. Historically, the median household income (HHI) for luxury retailers dips in October and November as middle-income shoppers enter the market for gifts. However, as the sector's baseline affluence rises, the holiday audience is following suit, with the income gap between year-round and seasonal shoppers narrowing. This suggests that the traditional middle-income splurge is waning, replaced by a holiday consumer who increasingly mirrors the high-income profile of the core luxury client.
On the opposite side of the apparel spectrum, the thrift segment appears to be benefitting from the economic headwinds that have put luxury out of reach for many average-income consumers. The data shows that the segment’s captured market median HHI has inched upward since 2022 (although still below the nationwide median of $79.6K) – suggesting that some higher-income consumers are seeking price relief by trading down to thrift stores.
And while the segment's captured market median HHI also decreases slightly in October and November, the decline is less marked than for the luxury segment, indicating only limited leakage of higher-income thrift visitors during the holiday season. These trends suggest that the thrift segment is benefiting from a more price-sensitive consumer base, as its trade area continues to broaden to include a greater share of higher-income households.
Foot traffic and consumer trends across the luxury and thrift segments reveal deeper shifts in the apparel industry. For luxury retailers, a core affluent audience continues to anchor year-round performance, while the aspirational holiday shopper who once traded up for premium gifts appears less engaged than in previous years. Meanwhile, the thrift segment – and other segments traditionally catering to lower-income shoppers – seem to be benefitting from an increasingly bifurcated landscape that has expanded their reach among a wider range of consumers.
While luxury retailers can’t control macroeconomic conditions, they can double-down on the authentic, premium experiences that sustain high-income loyalty and have historically drawn aspirational shoppers during the holidays. At the same time, thrift stores can’t simply introduce premium merchandise to attract higher-income shoppers, but they can continue to invest in store operations in ways that enhance the treasure-hunting experience and strengthen their overall value proposition.
For more holiday retail insights, visit Placer.ai/anchor.
The Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom metro area is emerging as one of California’s most resilient growth stories. Between 2021 and 2023, the region added residents at a steady, if modest, pace, even as the state overall faced declining or stagnant population trends. And by 2024, the CBSA pulled ahead of the national metro average for year-over-year (YoY) population growth, outpacing major California peers including Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego.
What’s driving this momentum? And how is Sacramento’s rise shaping local retail and dining trends?
One factor behind Sacramento’s rise may be its economic diversity. The metro area is over-indexed for a broad cross-section of audience segments, ranging from wealthy and upper suburban families earning more than $100K to young urban singles and professionals bringing in less than $75K. And though the area’s median household income (HHI) sits below the California baseline, the diversity of household types – each contributing different spending patterns – creates a strong foundation for continued economic growth.
Location analytics also show that Sacramento’s expanding, economically diverse population is fueling a flourishing retail scene. From May through October 2025, overall retail visits in the CBSA rose YoY, outperforming California’s state average and keeping pace with national trends. In several key categories – including discount and dollar stores, home furnishings, superstores, and traditional apparel – the metro area exceeded both state and national benchmarks, underscoring Sacramento’s rising consumer strength and regional momentum.
Greater Sacramento’s dining scene is also thriving. Fast-casual and quick-service chains overperformed during the analyzed period, reflecting the region’s growing base of young professionals, urban singles, and families who may favor convenient, affordable dining choices. And while full-service chain visits dipped slightly below 2024 levels, they represented only 12.2% of total traffic across the three dining segments for the period.
Sacramento’s broader rise is also closely tied to the vitality of the city itself. The chart below shows that out-of-market visits – defined here as visits by people who neither live nor work in the city – rose 3.5% YoY over the past 6 months. This influx includes visitors from across the metro and beyond – and HHI data indicates that, on average, they tend to be more affluent than local residents.
These visitors are drawn to Sacramento’s concentration of independent restaurants, bars, retail, and cultural hubs, including its bustling Midtown neighborhood. And a growing calendar of major annual events, from Aftershock to Farm to Fork, is also helping to supercharge local tourism and cement the city’s regional appeal.
Bolstered by investments in major new semiconductor plants and medical centers, the Sacramento CBSA was recently ranked among LinkedIn’s 25 fastest-growing U.S. metro areas for jobs and new talent. And the region’s demographic breadth, strong retail and dining performance, and increasingly magnetic urban core position it for continued growth.
For more data-driven analyses of the trends shaping America’s cities follow Placer.ai/anchor.
Retail corridors have long been central to the holiday experience, offering festive spaces for shopping and intricate window displays to admire. But retail corridors can vary significantly – some cluster large global flagship stores, while others lean into smaller regional formats and boutique-style shops, creating a more lifestyle-oriented setting for spending time with friends and family.
We dove into the data for these two types of retail corridors to explore the foot traffic trends defining each space this holiday season.
Flagship-led corridors such as SoHo in New York City and Union Square in San Francisco typically see their visitation peak in December, when consumers come to browse elegant window displays, holiday lights, and seasonal attractions – often turning a shopping trip into a full outing with friends or family. Union Square’s towering Macy’s Christmas tree, outdoor ice rink, and “Winter Walk” draw crowds looking for a quintessential holiday atmosphere. And SoHo, home to numerous high-end flagship stores, remains one of Manhattan’s most sought-after luxury shopping districts during the holidays.
Both corridors have seen rising visits throughout 2025, suggesting that their December 2025 lifts could exceed last year’s levels.
However, retail corridors that center on boutiques, independent retailers, and lifestyle-oriented offerings rather than global luxury flagships – like Back Bay in Boston and South Congress Avenue in Austin – follow a different seasonal rhythm. Rather than peaking at year-end, visits to these districts spike earlier in the calendar.
Back Bay perhaps benefits from “Open Newbury,” the summer program that closes Newbury Street to vehicular traffic and turns the corridor into a pedestrian promenade, while South Congress sees heightened activity in the spring, before the Texas heat arrives. Both have also seen solid visit growth in 2025, indicating the potential for a healthy December – even if holiday foot traffic plays a smaller role in their overall annual performance compared to flagship-led districts.
As both flagship-led and lifestyle-driven corridors head into December with solid year-to-date momentum, high street retailers have a clear opportunity to capitalize on distinct seasonal strengths. Flagship districts should be prepared for an especially pronounced holiday surge, while lifestyle-oriented corridors can focus on converting growing spring and summer foot traffic bumps into sustained engagement year-round.
For more foot traffic insights, visit Placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
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Traffic for manufacturing facilities included in the Placer.ai Manufacturing Index declined 3.5% year over year (YoY) in November 2025, indicating reduced operational intensity that may reflect fewer production shifts, lower output volumes, or scaled-back facility utilization. While part of the decline reflects calendar shifts – November 2025 contained one fewer working day than the prior year – the broader trend aligns with official data. The ISM Manufacturing PMI remained in contraction during the month, underscoring a subdued end to 2025 for the U.S. manufacturing sector.
But even as macro headwinds weighed on other parts of the economy – particularly goods production – e-commerce operators seem to be scaling capacity, expanding hiring, and investing in distribution efficiency. This momentum is reflected in visit gains to e-commerce fulfillment facilities nationwide, with November posting the strongest growth of 2025 at 6.6% YoY.
The consistent upward trajectory in foot traffic indicates that digital retail channels remain a key engine of economic activity, with robust consumer demand fueling the growth of fulfillment networks despite broader industrial softness. The steady gains through the fall in particular suggest that operators are expecting strong holiday demand and are well prepared to handle it.
The softness of the Industrial Index combined with the strength of the E-Commerce Distribution Index highlights a growing paradox: manufacturing activity is weakening even as consumer demand remains firm.
This divergence is likely due to a confluence of factors. Consumer spending may be flowing toward lower-cost online goods and everyday essentials rather than the higher-priced durable goods that drive factory output. Retailers may also be working through excess inventories and placing fewer new orders, while high interest rates make it more expensive for businesses to invest in equipment or expand production. Together, these dynamics point to a two-speed economy heading into 2026 – one powered by resilient consumption and digital commerce, while traditional production continues to recalibrate.
For more data-driven consumer insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
With budgets stretched and food inflation lingering, many dining concepts assume that value – specifically, a compelling price-per-food-item ratio – is the key to driving traffic in 2025. And this approach may work: chains like Chili's have shown that an array of deals – such as the 3 For Me and the Triple Dipper Deal – has helped the casual dining brand significantly outpace the wider dining category for more than a year.
But looking at recent QSR traffic trends suggests a more nuanced story. At both McDonald’s and Burger King, the strongest visit lifts in recent months came from experiential promotions and culturally resonant LTOs – not from discounts.
McDonald’s reintroduced its Extra Value Meals on September 8, 2025 – but despite substantial promotional support, the rollout produced only a modest uptick in visits that week. And while traffic improved slightly in the weeks that followed, analyzing recent foot traffic trends highlights that the real inflection points came from experiential activations.
The return of Monopoly, which gave registered app users the chance to win prizes ranging from free food to high-value rewards, sustained elevated visits for weeks through gamification. Boo Buckets sparked a Halloween-season surge driven by nostalgia and collectability and drove a 10.8% increase in weekly visits compared to the January to August weekly visit average. And The Grinch Meal generated the strongest spike of the entire period by tapping into holiday IP and playful packaging. This data highlights that while consumers may appreciate affordability, moments that feel fun, shareable, and culturally relevant may sometimes be more effective at bringing them through the door.
Burger King’s recent performance shows a similar pattern. The rollout of the limited-time Monster Menu generated a stronger visit lift than either Treat Week or Perks Week, both of which focused on giveaways and discounts. The debut of the chain’s nearly $20 Advent Calendar also outperformed Treat Week and Perks Week, underscoring how novelty and excitement may have a greater impact than price-based incentives.
And the strongest surge came with the debut of the SpongeBob Menu, which produced the strongest spike of the entire period and pushed weekly visits well above the January to August average. By pairing a beloved character franchise with themed packaging, kids’ meal tie-ins, and a sense of occasion, Burger King tapped into the same emotional drivers fueling McDonald’s biggest wins.
While price sensitivity will likely continue to influence dining decisions in 2026, recent QSR data underscores an important point: Consumers may be watching their wallets, but price alone doesn’t determine where they choose to eat. Chili’s success shows that a compelling value platform can be a powerful differentiator in full-service dining, where the experience is already baked into the visit. But the same strategy doesn’t automatically translate to the QSR landscape, where affordability is expected and price-based promotions quickly blur together.
Consumers still care about value – but value now spans both price and experience. For full-service restaurants, this means leaning harder into the affordability side of that equation. With ambiance, service, and hospitality already part of the offering, emphasizing everyday value or reliable deal structures may help guests justify dining out more often.
For QSR brands, the calculus is different, and price alone may not be enough to unlock meaningful incremental traffic. Instead, traffic data shows that the strongest results in the QSR space come from experience-driven LTOs, cultural tie-ins, and moments that feel fun, collectible, or social. In other words, fast-food chains may need to focus less on matching grocery-store economics and more on delivering the kind of excitement consumers simply can’t get at home.
As budgets remain tight and expectations continue to evolve, the brands that win won’t be those that chase the lowest price – but those that understand how to deliver the right kind of value for their category: affordability where it matters, and memorable experiences where it counts.
For more data-driven insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
Black Friday deals may now be spread throughout the month of November – but for the Citadel Outlet’s most passionate shoppers, nothing beats the rush of standing in line with thousands of other eager customers awaiting the chance to be the first to scoop up deals. This year, the mall opened on Thanksgiving night once again – and the foot-traffic data shows that shoppers responded. While most malls in California and across the country saw visits plunge on the holiday, Citadel Outlets experienced a significant surge in traffic, despite being open for only a limited window.
Citadel Outlet as a whole opened Thanksgiving evening at 8pm, with certain stores opening even earlier at 4pm or 6pm. Black Friday sale hours ran until 11pm on Friday, giving these marathon shoppers 27 hours of continuous shopping. People driving northbound on the 5 freeway post-Thanksgiving dinner would have come across lines of cars visible already waiting to get into the Citadel parking lot to get a start on holiday shopping and burn off that turkey by hitting their step count. Once there, exciting experiences awaited, such as a giant Christmas tree and a gingerbread man scavenger hunt.
A quarter of visits to the Citadel on Thursday/Friday actually took place on the Thursday of Thanksgiving itself.
Value seekers came out in abundance, led by Melting Pot Families, Near-Urban Diverse Families, and City Hopefuls per Spatial.ai’s Personalive.
Angelenos were willing to come from afar, with the Citadel shoppers encompassing a whopping 255.5 mile trade area to score their deals on Black Friday alone. They say shopping is a marathon and it appears that for these dedicated customers, nothing beats the thrill of the chase when it comes to saving money.
Ultimately, Citadel Outlets’ Black Friday performance suggests that immersive experiences, extended hours, and a strong value proposition can still transform holiday shopping into a destination-worthy event.
For more data-driven retail insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
This report includes data from Placer.ai Data Version 2.0, which implements improvements to our extrapolation capabilities, adds short visit monitoring, and enhances visit detection.
Grabbing a coffee or snack at a convenience store is a time-honored road trip tradition – but increasingly, Convenience Stores (C-Stores) have also emerged as places people go out of their way to visit.
Convenience stores have thrived in recent years, making inroads into the discretionary dining space and growing both their audiences and their sales. Between April 2023 and March 2024, C-Stores experienced consistent year-over-year (YoY) visit growth, generally outperforming Overall Retail. Unsurprisingly, C-Stores fell behind Overall Retail in November and December 2023, when holiday shoppers flocked to malls and superstores to buy gifts for loved ones. But in January 2024, the segment regained its lead, growing YoY visits even as Overall Retail languished in the face of an Arctic blast that had many consumers hunkering down at home.
C-Stores’ current strength is partially due to the significant innovation by leading players in the space: Chains like Casey’s, Maverik, Buc-ee’s, and Rutter’s are investing in both in their product offerings and in their physical venues to transform the humble C-Store from a stop along the way into a bona fide destination. Dive into the data to explore some of the key strategies helping C-Stores drive consumer engagement and stay ahead of the pack.
While chain expansion may explain some of the C-Store segment growth, a look at visit-per-location trends shows that demand is growing at the store level as well. Over the past year (April 2023 to March 2024), average visits per location on an industry-wide basis grew by 1.8%, compared to the year prior (April 2022 to 2023).
And within this growing segment, some brands are distinguishing themselves and outperforming category averages. Casey’s, for example, saw the average number of visits to each of its locations increase by 2.3% over the same time frame – while Maverik, Buc-ee’s and Rutter’s saw visits per location increase by 3.2%, 3.4% and 3.9%, respectively.
Each in its own way, Casey’s, Maverik, Buc-ee’s, and Rutter’s, are helping to transform C-Stores from pit stops where people can stretch their legs and grab a cup of coffee to destinations in and of themselves.
Midwestern gas and c-store chain Casey’s – famous for its breakfast pizza and other grab-and-go breakfast items – has emerged as a prime spot for fast food pizza lovers to grab a slice first thing in the morning. And Salt Lake City, Utah-based Maverik – which recently acquired Kum & Go and its 400-plus stores – is also establishing itself as a breakfast destination thanks to its specialty burritos and other chef-inspired creations.
Casey’s and Maverik’s popular breakfast options are likely helping the chains receive its larger-than-average share of morning visits: In Q1 2024, 16.3% of visits to Maverik and 17.5% of visits to Casey’s took place during the 7:00 AM - 10:00 AM daypart, compared to just 14.9% of visits to the wider C-Store category.
Psychographic data from the Spatial.ai’s FollowGraph dataset – which looks at the social media activity of a given audience – also suggests that Casey’s and Maverik’s have opened stores in locations that allow them to reach their target audience. Compared to the average consumer, residents of Casey’s potential market are 7% more likely to be “Fast Food Pizza Lovers” than both the average consumer and the average C-Store trade area resident. Residents of Maverik’s potential market are 16% more likely than the average consumer to be “Mexican Food Enthusiasts,” compared to residents of the average C-Store’s trade area who are only 1% more likely to fall into that category.
With both chains expanding, Casey’s and Maverik can hope to introduce new audiences to their unique breakfast options and solidify their hold over the morning daypart within the C-Store space over the next few years.
Everything is said to be bigger in the Lone Star State, and Texas-based convenience store chain Buc-ee’s – holder of the record for the worlds’ largest C-Store – is no exception. With a unique array of specialty food items and award-winning bathrooms, Buc-ee’s has emerged as a well-known tourist attraction. And the popular chain’s status as a visitor hotspot is reflected in two key metrics.
First, Buc-ee’s attracts a much greater share of weekend visits than other convenience store chains. In Q1 2024, 39.6% of visits to Buc-ee’s took place on the weekends, compared to just 28.3% for the wider C-Store industry. And second, Buc-ee’s captured markets feature higher-than-average shares of family-centric households – including those belonging to Experian: Mosaic’s Suburban Style, Flourishing Families, and Promising Families segments.
Rather than merely a place to stop on the way to work, Buc-ee’s has emerged as a favored destination for families and for people looking for something fun to do on their days off.
Buc-ee’s isn’t the only C-Store chain that believes bigger is better. Pennsylvania-based Rutter’s is increasing visits and customer dwell time by expanding its footprint – both in terms of store count and venue size. New stores will be 10,000 to 12,000 square feet – significantly larger than the industry average of around 3,100 square feet. And in more urban areas, where space is at a premium, the company is building upwards.
Rutter’s added a second floor to one of its existing locations in York, PA in December 2023. The remodel, which was met with enthusiasm by customers, provided additional seating for up to 30 diners, a beer cave, and an expanded wine selection. And in Q1 2024, the location experienced 15.6% YoY visit growth – compared to a chainwide average of 7.6%. Visitors to the newly remodeled Rutter’s also stayed significantly longer than they did pre-renovation. The share of extended visits to the store (longer than ten minutes) grew from 20.8% in Q1 2023 to 27.0% in Q1 2024 – likely from people browsing the chain’s selection of beers or grabbing a bite to eat.
Convenience stores are flourishing, transforming into some of the most exciting dining and tourist destinations in the country. Today, C-Store customers can expect to find brisket sandwiches, gourmet coffees, or craft beers, rather than the stale cups of coffee of old. And the data shows that customers are receptive to these innovations, helping drive the segment’s success.
The first quarter of 2024 was generally a good one for retailers. Though unusually cold and stormy weather left its mark on the sector’s January performance, February and March saw steady year-over-year (YoY) weekly visit growth that grew more robust as the quarter wore on.
March ended on a high note, with the week of March 25th – including Easter Sunday – seeing a 6.1% YoY visit boost, driven in part by increased retail activity in the run-up to the holiday. (Last year, Easter fell on April 9th, 2023, so the week of March 25th is being compared to a regular week.)
Though prices remain high and consumer confidence has yet to fully regain its footing, retail’s healthy Q1 showing may be a sign of good things to come in 2024.
Drilling down into the data for leading retail segments demonstrates the continued success of value-priced, essential, and wellness-related categories.
Discount & Dollar Stores led the pack with 11.2% YoY quarterly visit growth, followed by Grocery Stores, Fitness, and Superstores – all of which outperformed Overall Retail. Dining also enjoyed a YoY quarterly visit bump, despite the segment’s largely discretionary nature. And despite the high interest rates continuing to weigh on the housing and home renovation markets, Home Improvement & Furnishings maintained just a minor YoY visit gap.
Discount & Dollar Stores experienced strong YoY visit growth throughout most of Q1 – and as go-to destinations for groceries and other other essential goods, they held their own even during mid-January’s Arctic blast. In the last week of March, shoppers flocked to leading discount chains for everything from chocolate Easter bunnies to basket-making supplies – driving a remarkable 21.5% YoY visit spike.
Dollar General continued to dominate the Discount & Dollar Store space in Q1, with visits to its locations accounting for nearly half of the segment’s quarterly foot traffic (44.7%). Next in line was Dollar Tree, followed by Family Dollar and Five Below. Together, the four chains – all of which experienced positive YoY quarterly visit growth – drew a whopping 91.6% of quarterly visits to the category.
Rain or shine, people have to eat. And like Discount & Dollar Stores, traditional Grocery Stores were relatively busy through January as shoppers braved the storms to stock up on needed items. Momentum continued to build throughout the quarter, culminating in a 10.5% foot traffic increase in the week ending with Easter Sunday.
Like in other categories, it was budget-friendly Grocery banners that took the lead. No-frills Aldi drove a chain-wide 24.4% foot traffic increase in Q1, by expanding its fleet – while also growing the average number of visits per location. Other value-oriented chains, including Trader Joe’s and Food Lion, experienced significant foot traffic increases of their own. And though conventional grocery leaders like H-E-B, Kroger, and Albertsons saw smaller visit bumps, they too outperformed Q1 2023 by meaningful margins.
January is New Year’s resolution season – when people famously pick themselves up off the couch, dust off their trainers, and vow to go to the gym more often. And with wellness still top of mind for many consumers, the Fitness category enjoyed robust YoY visit growth throughout most of Q1 – despite lapping a strong Q1 2023.
Predictably, Fitness’s visit growth slowed during the last week of March, when many Americans likely indulged in Easter treats rather than work out. But given the category’s strength over the past several years, there is every reason to believe it will continue to flourish.
For Fitness chains, too, cost was key to success in Q1 – with value gyms experiencing the biggest visit jumps. EōS Fitness and Crunch Fitness, both of which offer low-cost membership options, saw their Q1 visits skyrocket 28.9% and 22.0% YoY, respectively – helped in part by aggressive expansions. At the same time, premium and mid-range gyms like Life Time and LA Fitness are also finding success – showing that when it comes to Fitness, there’s plenty of room for a variety of models to thrive.
Superstores – including wholesale clubs – are prime destinations for big, planned shopping expeditions – during which customers can load up on a month’s supply of food items or stock up on home goods. And perhaps for this reason, the category felt the impact of January’s inclement weather more than either dollar chains or supermarkets – which are more likely to see shoppers pop in as needed for daily essentials.
But like Grocery Stores and Discount & Dollar Stores, Superstores ended the quarter with an impressive YoY visit spike, likely fueled by Easter holiday shoppers.
As in Q4 2023, membership warehouse chains – Costco Wholesale, BJ’s Wholesale Club, and Sam’s Club – drove much of the Superstore category’s positive visit growth, as shoppers likely engaged in mission-driven shopping in an effort to stretch their budgets. Still, segment mainstays Walmart and Target also enjoyed positive foot traffic growth, with YoY visits up 3.9% and 3.5%, respectively.
Moving into more discretionary territory, Dining experienced a marked January slump, as hunkered-down consumers likely opted for delivery. But the segment rallied in February and March, even though foot traffic dipped slightly during the last week of March, when many families gathered to enjoy home-cooked holiday meals.
Coffee Chains and Fast-Casual Restaurants saw the largest YoY visit increases, followed by QSR – highlighting the enduring power of lower-cost, quick-serve dining options. But Full-Service Restaurants (FSR) also saw a slight segment-wide YoY visit uptick in Q1 – good news for a sector that has yet to bounce back from the one-two punch of COVID and inflation. Within each Dining category, however, some chains experienced outsize visit growth – including favorites like Dutch Bros. Coffee, Slim Chickens, In-N-Out Burger, and Texas Roadhouse.
Since the shelter-in-place days of COVID – when everybody had their sourdough starter and DIY was all the rage – Home Improvement & Furnishings chains have faced a tough environment. Many deferred or abandoned home improvement projects in the wake of inflation, and elevated interest rates coupled with a sluggish housing market put a further damper on the category.
Against this backdrop, Home Improvement & Furnishings’ relatively lackluster Q1 visit performance should come as no surprise. But the narrowing of the visit gap in March – which also saw one week of positive visit growth – may serve as a promising sign for the segment. (The abrupt foot traffic drop during the week of March 25th, 2024 is likely a just reflection of Easter holiday shopping pattern.)
Within the Home Improvement & Furnishings space, some bright spots stood out in Q1 – including Harbor Freight Tools, which saw visits increase by 10.0%, partly due to the brand’s growing store count. Tractor Supply Co., Menards, and Ace Hardware also registered visit increases.
January 2024’s stormy weather left its mark on the Q1 retail environment, especially for discretionary categories. But as the quarter progressed, retailers rallied, with healthy YoY foot traffic growth that peaked during the last week of March – the week of Easter Sunday. All in all, retail’s positive Q1 performance leaves plenty of room for optimism about what’s in store for the rest of 2024.
This report includes data from Placer.ai Data Version 2.0, which implements improvements to our extrapolation capabilities, adds short visit monitoring, and enhances visit detection.
Over the past year, Fast-Casual & Quick-Service Restaurant (QSR) chains have thrived, consistently outperforming the Full-Service Dining segment with positive year-over-year (YoY) visit growth every quarter since 2023. In this white paper, we dive into the data for leading dining chains to take a closer look at what’s driving visitors to the QSR segment and what other dining categories can learn from fast-food’s success.
One of the key factors separating QSR chains – aptly known as “fast food” – from the rest of the dining industry is the speed at which diners can get a ready-to-eat meal in their hands. And within the QSR space, speed of service is one of the ways chains differentiate themselves from their competition.
Leading fast-food chains are investing heavily in technologies and systems designed to help them serve customers ever more quickly:
Taco Bell’s “Touch Display Kitchen System” is designed to optimize cooking operations and improve wait times, while the chain’s Go Mobile restaurant format seeks to alleviate bottlenecks in the drive-thru lane. Chick-fil-A also has dedicated channels for quick mobile order pick-up and is planning four-lane drive-thrus with second-floor kitchens to get meals out even faster. And to save time at the drive-thru, Wendy’s is experimenting with generative AI and developing an underground, robotic system to deliver digital orders to designated parking spots within seconds.
And location intelligence shows that all three chains are succeeding in reducing customer wait times. Over the past four years, Taco Bell, Chick-fil-A, and Wendy’s have seen steady increases in the share of visits to their venues lasting less than 10 minutes.
The data also suggests that investment in speed of service can increase overall visitation to QSR venues.
In late 2022, McDonald’s opened a to-go-only location outside of Dallas, TX with a lane dedicated to mobile order fulfillment via a conveyor belt. And in Q1 2024, this venue not only had a larger share of short visits compared to the other McDonald’s locations in the region, but also more visits compared to the McDonald’s average visits per venue in the Dallas-Fort Worth CBSA.
This provides further support for the power of fast order fulfillment to drive QSR visits, with customers motivated by the prospect of getting in and out quickly.
The success of the fast-food segment is even driving other restaurants to borrow typical QSR formats – especially during time slots when people are most likely to grab a bite to eat on the go.
In September 2023, full-service leader Applebee’s opened a new format: a fast casual location focusing on To Go orders in Deer Park, NY, featuring pick-up lockers for digital orders and limited dine-in options without table service.
And the new format is already attracting outsized weekday and lunchtime crowds. In Q1 2024, 20.5% of visits to the chain’s To Go venue took place during the 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM time slot, while the average Applebee’s in the New York-Newark-Jersey City CBSA received less than 10% of its daily visits during that daypart. The new restaurant also drew a significantly higher share of weekday visits than other nearby venues.
This suggests that takeaway-focused venues could help full-service chains grow their visit share during weekdays and the coveted lunch rush, when consumers may be less inclined to have a sit-down meal.
An additional factor contributing to QSR and Fast Casual success in 2024 may be the rise of chicken-based chains. Chicken is a versatile ingredient that has remained relatively affordable, which could be contributing to its growing popularity and the rapid expansion of several chicken chains.
Comparing the relative visit share (not including delivery) of various sub-segments within the wider Fast Casual & QSR space showed that the share of visits to chains with chicken-based menus has increased steadily between 2019 and 2023: In Q1 2024, 15.3% of Fast Casual & QSR visits were to a chicken restaurant concept, compared to just 13.4% in Q1 2019.
The strength of chicken-based concepts is also evident when comparing average visits per venue at leading chicken chains with the wider Fast Casual & QSR average.
Both Chick-fil-A, the nation’s predominant chicken chain, and Raising Cane’s, a rapidly expanding player in the fast-food chicken space, are receiving significantly more visits per venue than their Fast Casual & QSR peers: In Q1 2024, Raising Cane’s and Chick-fil-A restaurants saw an average of 153.0% and 237.7% more visits per venue, respectively, compared to the combined Fast Casual & QSR industries average.
The elevated traffic at chicken chains likely plays a part in their profitability per restaurant relative to other Fast Casual & QSR concepts with more sizable fleets.
QSR and Fast-Casual chains are also particularly adept at generating seasonal visit spikes through unique Limited Time Offers and holiday promotions adapted to the calendar.
Arby’s recently launched a 2 for $6 sandwich promotion on February 1st, with two of the three sandwich options on promotion being fish-based in an apparent attempt to entice diners eschewing meat in observance of Lent. The company also brought back a specialty fish sandwich, likely with the goal of further appealing to the Lent-observing demographic.
The offers seem to have driven significant traffic spikes, with foot traffic during the promotion period significantly higher than the January daily visit average. And traffic was particularly elevated during Lent – which this year fell on Wednesday, February 14th through Thursday, March 28th, with visits spiking on Fridays when those observing are most likely to seek out fish-based meals.
Some of the elevated visits in the second half of Q1 may be attributed to the comparison to a weaker January across the dining segment. But the success of the fish-forward promotion specifically during Lent suggests that the company’s calendar-appropriate LTO played a major role in driving visits to the chain.
Shorter-term promotions – even those lasting just a single day – can also drive major visit spikes.
Since 1991, White Castle has transformed its fast-food restaurants into a reservation-only, “fine-dining” experience for dinner on Valentine's Day. In 2024, Valentine’s Day fell on a Wednesday, and White Castle’s sit-down event drove a 11.8% visit increase relative to the average Wednesday in Q1 2024 and a 3.9% visit increase compared to the overall Q1 2024 daily average.
The elevated visit numbers over Valentine’s Day are even more impressive when considering that a full-service dining room can accommodate fewer visitors than the drive-thrus and counter service of White Castle’s typical QSR configuration. The spike in February 14th visits may also be attributed to an increased number of diners showing up throughout the day to take in the Valentine’s Day buzz.
QSR and Fast-Casual dining are having a moment. And the data shows that a combination of factors – including fast and efficient service, the rising popularity of chicken-based dining concepts, and effective LTOs – are all playing a part in the categories’ recent success.
