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The home improvement category has faced sustained headwinds in recent years – from elevated mortgage rates to sluggish existing-home sales and a consumer base hesitant to take on major remodeling projects. But after a prolonged stretch of year-over-year (YoY) visit declines, both Home Depot and Lowe’s have returned to growth – and the foot traffic data suggests this shift is more than just a seasonal uptick.
Both home improvement leaders closed Q1 2026 with YoY visit gains – Home Depot up 1.9% and Lowe’s up 2.0% – building on the stabilization seen in Q4 2025. This improvement aligns with their latest financial results: Home Depot reported U.S. comparable sales growth of 0.3%, while Lowe’s posted a stronger 1.3%. And for both chains, the return to positive territory suggests a long-awaited recovery may finally be underway.
Monthly data also suggests that while inclement weather contributed to the segment's strong performance in January, the underlying recovery is genuine. Home improvement benefits from unusual weather events, and January's strong gains for both chains – Home Depot +2.5%, Lowe's +3.9% – were partly fueled by Winter Storm Fern, which impacted communities across more than thirty states. But the momentum carried into February, and while growth moderated in March – and for Home Depot again in April – neither brand slipped into negative territory.
That resilience is an encouraging signal for the category during the critical spring home improvement season, particularly given renewed headwinds like rising gas prices and softening consumer sentiment. Lowe's stronger performance in April 2026, supported by easier comparisons, may also reflect its greater exposure to DIY customers tackling smaller repairs and at-home projects as consumers redirect spending closer to home.
Interest rates remain elevated and the housing market sluggish – but those same forces may now be working in the category's favor, as homeowners staying put begin to tackle a growing backlog of deferred repairs and maintenance. The bigger question is whether that momentum eventually unlocks the large discretionary projects both retailers say consumers are still holding back on – especially amid continued tariff uncertainty and elevated prices at the pump.
For more data-driven retail insights, follow 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.
There may be more digital entertainment than ever before, but consumers still seek out places to socialize and have fun in the physical world. And in-person entertainment venues – from stadiums to experiential viewing concepts – are attracting unique audiences that span a range of psychographic segments.
A closer look at venues in the Dallas and Los Angeles areas reveals how this diversity plays out across markets, and what it could signal for stakeholders in the business of out-of-home entertainment.
In-person entertainment includes a variety of venues and formats. In the Dallas area, legacy venues AT&T Stadium, American Airlines Center, and Globe Life Field – and eatertainment concepts, movie theaters, and “shared reality” experiences such as Cosm – are just some of the in-person entertainment options.
And in the Dallas region, AI-powered trade area analysis reveals that affluent and suburban families dominate the out-of-home entertainment scene. Across every analyzed venue and entertainment category, either Ultra Wealthy Families or Wealthy Suburban Families ranks as the top audience segment – reflecting the region's family-oriented, suburban fabric.
That said, each venue or category attracts a distinct audience mix. Cosm Dallas and the American Airlines Center over-index on Ultra Wealthy Families and draw a relatively higher share of Young Professionals than other venues. This likely reflects their premium positioning: Cosm as a novelty experience, and the AAC as an upscale urban destination where higher costs may skew attendance toward more affluent consumers.
By contrast, Wealthy Suburban Families lead at Globe Life Field (home to the Texas Rangers) and AT&T Stadium (home to the Dallas Cowboys), both of which also attract meaningful shares of blue-collar suburban audiences.
And there is clear demand for in-person entertainment among Dallas’s up-and-coming and working-class consumers. Blue Collar Suburbs and Young Urban Singles segments tend to favor eatertainment venues and movie theaters – more affordable options for going out.
Greater Los Angeles offers a similarly diverse mix of entertainment anchors: SoFi Stadium, Dodger Stadium, Angel Stadium, and Crypto.com Arena – as well as a Cosm location, eatertainment chains, and movie theaters.
However, audience segmentation for in-person entertainment in the region shows a distinct profile compared to Dallas – shaped by SoCal’s urban density and demographic diversity. Near-Urban Diverse Families represent the largest segment across every analyzed venue and entertainment category, while Wealthy Suburban Families also account for a significant share of visitors across formats – particularly at Angel Stadium, likely due to its suburban Orange County location. The prevalence of these two segments suggests that urban, middle-class family audiences are the backbone of entertainment demand in the region while higher-income, suburban households play a strong supporting role in out-of-home entertainment consumption.
Two other patterns also jump out from the data.
First, Cosm Los Angeles and Crypto.com Arena’s audiences draw more heavily from the Educated Urbanites and Ultra Wealthy Families segments, which could point to a somewhat more premium-leaning audience mix at these destinations.
Second, the Young Urban Singles segment accounts for a relatively consistent audience share across all categories – suggesting broad-based entertainment preferences. With no single entertainment format commanding outsized engagement from this young cohort, operators in the Los Angeles market have an opportunity to further tailor experiences and potentially shape future demand among this audience.
In both Dallas and Los Angeles, the composition of out-of-home entertainment audiences reflects each market’s underlying demographics and urban structure.
And yet, certain consumer segments prefer particular entertainment venues or formats over others, and understanding who shows up is critical. Operators and advertisers that tailor their offerings to the dominant segments – whether through pricing or programming – may be better positioned to capture sustained demand and attain better ROI within their market.
For more 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.
The U.S. restaurant industry navigated a challenging first quarter in 2026, marked by macroeconomic headwinds, unfavorable weather, and cautious consumer spending. Yet, within the breakfast-first sector, a clear narrative is emerging: The era of the traditional legacy diner is fading, making way for premium, experience-driven concepts. And at the forefront of this shift is First Watch. Armed with a differentiated culinary menu, rapid but disciplined expansion, and a highly resilient consumer base, the brand is not only defying broader casual dining trends but is fundamentally rewriting the playbook for daytime dining.
Over the past few years, the breakfast-first restaurant category has bifurcated into two distinct camps: premium and experience-driven concepts capturing visit share, and legacy diner-style chains, many of which are struggling to keep up. While Q1 2026 proved to be a tighter traffic environment overall amid macroeconomic uncertainty and unfavorable weather conditions across the U.S., several experience-focused brands and resilient fan-favorites continued growing their footprints – and their audiences.
First Watch led the pack in overall visit growth as it continued expanding its store count, while average visits per location held steady – demonstrating its ability to scale without diluting demand at existing locations – while Snooze saw a 1.1% increase in visits per location.
Conversely, the steepest laggards in the segment were legacy diner chains IHOP, Denny’s, and Huddle House, all of which saw overall visits decline as they continued rightsizing their footprints, with visits per location also modestly down. These brands are increasingly tracking closer to casual dining peers like Applebee’s and Outback Steakhouse, which have faced significant headwinds in recent months.
Still, among legacy diners, Waffle House stood out as a clear outperformer in Q1 2026, likely due in part to its status as a regional institution across much of the South. And the chain’s operational resilience may have also played a role: While Winter Storm Fern pushed the so-called “Waffle House Index” into the red across much of the region in late January, the brand’s unique disaster-readiness appears to have enabled some locations to reopen quickly or avoid closure entirely.
Ultimately, despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, brands that leverage a differentiated culinary menu, high-touch customer service, or fierce brand loyalty are successfully navigating the highly fragmented daypart much better than their traditional diner counterparts.
While several premium concepts have successfully carved out a lucrative niche in breakfast-first dining, First Watch has redefined the category. By blending the elevated, chef-driven culinary experience of a localized brunch spot with the operational efficiency of a national powerhouse, First Watch has created a model that sees success across multiple regions of the U.S. This unique positioning provides the brand with a massive structural advantage, fueling a physical growth trajectory that far outpaces its competitors.
Importantly, visitation data also reinforces that First Watch’s restaurant classes from 2024 and 2025 have consistently kept pace with the maturity curve of recent openings. An analysis of visit-per-location trends for First Watch locations opened in 2024 and 2025 versus the chain’s nationwide fleet reveals that the class of 2024 outpaced nationwide trends, while the 2025 cohort – even when factoring in the high volume of openings that took place in Q3 2025 – has also kept pace. These are incredibly positive indicators for a brand rapidly scaling its national footprint.
First Watch has set a long-term goal of reaching more than 2,200 restaurants across the United States – an ambitious target that would more than triple its current size. Reaching this milestone is achievable, but it will require the brand to meaningfully deepen its penetration in large coastal and Sun Belt metros, where it remains under-penetrated relative to its proven suburban strongholds. Placer.ai foot traffic data across more than 100 Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) reveals that First Watch's unit economics are remarkably consistent, confirming the model works across multiple geographies. While newer markets like New York, Chicago, Boston, and Las Vegas currently generate lower visits per capita than the chain's core Sun Belt and Midwest suburban markets, there are significant opportunities for expansion. First Watch's breakfast-first model, strong unit-level economics, and growing brand recognition give it a credible platform to aggressively capture market share in these new territories.
Despite slowing early-spring trends, First Watch remains well-positioned to hit its 2026 same-store sales growth target of 1% to 3%. This confidence is rooted in a few key factors. First, the brand benefits from a resilient core consumer who is materially less sensitive to macroeconomic pressures than the traditional diner customer, providing a much higher floor for baseline traffic. Second, First Watch leverages reliable pricing power, as its premium positioning and highly anticipated seasonal menu rotations consistently drive check growth. Finally, the company's commitment to operational excellence through its company-owned model ensures that execution remains strong and the guest experience is uncompromised, even during slower traffic periods. By driving outsized performance from its newest units and maintaining a highly loyal customer base, the brand is not merely surviving the breakfast category's headwinds; it is actively redefining what leadership in daytime dining looks like.
For more data-driven dining insights, follow 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.
The fast-casual sector has long been defined by its sweet spot within the restaurant industry, combining the convenience of fast food and the quality of casual dining. For years, CAVA and sweetgreen have stood as the standard-bearers of the health-forward movement, expanding their store footprint while building fiercely loyal followings among affluent consumers. However, Q1 2026 foot traffic data suggests that these two brands are now on diverging trajectories. While overall visits to both chains grew – thanks in part to ongoing expansions – CAVA saw its average visits per venue grow as well, while sweetgreen's per-location traffic remained flat YoY.
The contrast between same-store visit trends is even more striking. Over the past six months, same-store visits to CAVA have been uniformly positive – and 2026 traffic was particularly strong. Meanwhile, sweetgreen has seen consistently negative same-store visit declines, with March 2026 same-store visits down 7.6% compared to CAVA's 6.8% increase. This represents a meaningful spread between two brands competing for the same premium consumer.
This divergence is the result of structural differences in menu mix and value perception. Over the past six months, CAVA has rolled out strategic menu enhancements designed to reengage with middle-income consumers who may have turned away from fast-casual options in recent months and elevate its overall value perception.
Leaning heavily into its warm, protein-forward architecture, the brand has introduced additions like premium glazed salmon as a protein option alongside new variations of its highly successful spicy chicken and steak offering. Alongside these protein upgrades, CAVA has refreshed its seasonal roasted vegetable lineups and also introduced smaller items like harissa pita chips, sides, and dips. This ensures that the menu remains dynamic enough to drive incremental visits and avoid customer fatigue while maintaining the highly customizable, assembly-line efficiency that protects its strong unit economics. The diversity of CAVA’s menu – both in terms of innovation and pricing – have helped to drive down the chain’s captured trade area median household income the past four quarters, according to data from STI: Popstats combined with Placer data.
To close this widening gap, Sweetgreen has also planned several menu changes in 2026 focused on operational simplicity, value perception, and a major new category expansion. The brand kicked off the year by highlighting its health-forward roots through a limited-time menu collaboration with Dr. Mark Hyman that utilized existing ingredients, followed by the launch of the seasonal Winter Harvest Bowl and the highly requested return of shredded cheese to the core menu. However, the most significant news is Sweetgreen's planned mid-2026 rollout of wraps.
Currently undergoing rigorous stage-gate testing in Los Angeles, the Midwest, and Manhattan, the wrap platform – featuring accessible price points starting at $10.95 and capping below $15 for in-store pickup – is designed to aggressively target consumer value sensitivity. Management noted that wraps are intended to build upon their 2025 efforts (which included increased protein portions and $12 Daily Greens) to prove to budget-conscious, quality-driven diners that Sweetgreen can deliver a compelling, high-value meal without compromising its premium brand identity.
Ultimately, the Q1 2026 data serves as a critical inflection point. CAVA is actively gaining share in a contracting category by mastering geographic diversification, daypart breadth, and perceived value. Sweetgreen has the brand identity, the affluent customer base, and the regional runway to recover, but the strategic decisions made over the next 12 to 18 months will dictate whether this current slump is a temporary setback or a permanent competitive reality.
For more data-driven dining insight, 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.
Events are foundational to New Orleans’ identity and economic model. From the Sugar Bowl to Jazz Fest and Mardi Gras, to conferences, conventions, exhibitions and meetings of all sizes, the city operates on a year-round cycle of large-scale gatherings that drive consistent visitor inflows. Over the past 12 months, 64.6% of weekend visitors to New Orleans’ downtown, including the French Quarter, Central Business District (CBD), and Arts District, were domestic tourists coming from more than 250 miles away. And as travel behavior continues to evolve post-COVID – making it more difficult to predict attendance patterns from prior-year trends – the complexity of hosting at scale requires increasingly sophisticated, data-driven operational coordination.
Perhaps no event demonstrates this model – and this need – more clearly than Mardi Gras. Running from January 6th through Mardi Gras Day, the carnival season culminates in a surge of parades and celebrations that bring major crowds downtown (French Quarter, CBD, Arts District) and all along the uptown parade route.
Crucially, many of those visitors come from within Louisiana, making the festival a powerful vehicle for strengthening ties between the city and surrounding communities: During the final 12 days of Mardi Gras 2026, 54.2% of them came from within Louisiana, compared to 23.5% during the rest of the year.
And despite an uncertain macroeconomic environment, Mardi Gras’ audience continues to expand. From the Krewe of Cleopatra on February 6 through Mardi Gras Day on February 17, out-of-market visits to downtown New Orleans (French Quarter, CBD, Arts District) increased 10% year over year, reaching their highest level since 2020.
Data also shows that Mardi Gras draws a surprisingly diverse audience. To be sure, young revelers are a big part of the story – on Mardi Gras Day, the French Quarter sees an influx of “Contemporary Households”, a young-skewing segment that includes singles, couples without children, and non-family households. The median household income of the Quarter’s trade area also declines on the big day, as students and early-career professionals crowd into the neighborhood to party.
But some of the season's more family-friendly parades – like the Krewe of Bacchus which took place this year on Sunday, February 15th – have a decidedly different vibe.
On the day of the parade, families gather early along St. Charles Avenue, setting up tents and picnic tables and sharing traditional local food ahead of the evening procession. And surrounding neighborhoods such as the Garden District experience a measurable rise in affluent family segments and median household income, highlighting Mardi Gras’ broad and diverse appeal.
Of course, managing an event of this magnitude requires coordination across agencies, stakeholders, and neighborhoods. And in a post-pandemic environment where past attendance patterns cannot always serve as reliable benchmarks, data has become a critical tool for decision-making.
Audience insights now play a central role in operational planning – identifying where visitors congregate, estimating crowd volumes, and informing preparation by law enforcement, city officials, and other city stakeholders. When large gatherings are anticipated in specific corridors or blocks, recent visitation trends provide actionable context that helps partners allocate resources efficiently and prepare accordingly.
Few cities are as synonymous with celebration as New Orleans. And by combining tradition, diversity, and data-driven operational precision, the city has built the capacity to host complex, high-volume gatherings with consistency and coordination year after year.
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With roughly one in eight Americans now using GLP-1 medications for weight loss, their rapid adoption is shaping up to be one of the most consequential behavioral shifts in recent memory – with wide-ranging implications for businesses tied to how people spend their time and money.
We analyzed the data to understand how GLP-1 usage may be influencing real-world retail and dining foot traffic. How is grocery store visitation changing? What’s happening in limited-service dining? And which other categories are gaining from a heightened focus on health and wellness – further accelerating trends that began to take hold after the pandemic?
Research from Cornell University shows that GLP-1 users reduce household grocery spending by an average of 5.3% within six months of starting a medication, with the most significant pullbacks concentrated in calorie-dense, processed categories. At the same time, a handful of health-oriented foods – including yogurt, fresh fruit, nutrition bars, and meat snacks – are seeing increased spend.
And foot traffic data points to a parallel shift in where consumers are shopping, with a growing share of grocery visits flowing toward fresh-format stores like Trader Joe’s and Sprouts Farmers Market that emphasize high-quality perishables, curated health-oriented assortments, and an elevated in-store experience. While this pivot has been underway for several years, reflecting a broader post-pandemic focus on health and wellness, its recent acceleration coincides with the rise in GLP-1 use.
From Q1 2022 to Q1 2026, these chains steadily expanded their share of overall grocery foot traffic, with momentum accelerating beginning in Q1 2024, even as some experienced per-store softness amid a challenging consumer environment. Over the same period, the median household income within fresh-format chains’ captured markets, which had remained largely stable through early 2024, began to decline. This trend suggests a broadening customer base, as households across income brackets increasingly prioritize higher-quality food and allocate a larger share of their grocery trips to fresh formats.
The reallocation of spending also extends beyond the grocery aisle. Foot traffic data points to a meaningful reordering of food-away-from-home visits over the past three years, with healthier dining segments outperforming more indulgent ones – underscoring a broader shift toward more nutritious options that GLP-1 adoption may be helping to reinforce.
Frozen yogurt chains outpaced ice cream shops in year-over-year visit growth in both 2024 and 2025, as consumers gravitated toward lighter frozen treats. Smoothie and juice chains also captured growing demand, buoyed by expanding footprints from brands like Tropical Smoothie Cafe, Smoothie King, and Playa Bowls, while fast-casual similarly pulled ahead of QSR.
Fitness participation has been on the rise since the pandemic, and the data suggests gym habits are becoming more consistent over time – a trend that GLP-1 users, who often incorporate structured exercise into their routines, may be helping to reinforce.
Between Q1 2023 and Q1 2026, the share of visitors to leading gyms stopping by at least three times in an average month rose from 44.8% to 46.8%, while the share visiting at least four times rose from 37.3% to 39.1%. For a growing segment of the population, going to the gym has become a regular part of the weekly routine – with implications for fitness brands and the broader ecosystem of health-oriented businesses competing for this newly routine-driven consumer.
As consumers deepen their focus on health and fitness, the body transformations associated with GLP-1 use are also reshaping apparel demand. Alongside a growing need for wardrobe replenishment, GLP-1 users are investing more in their appearance and rediscovering the experience of shopping for clothes.
And this trend aligns with recent foot traffic data. Even as discretionary spending continues to face headwinds in a challenging macroeconomic environment, clothing retailers are seeing consistent year-over-year visit growth, driven in large part by the off-price sector – with each year outpacing the broader discretionary retail category by a widening margin. Apparel is pulling away from the pack, likely driven in part by a consumer whose relationship with their body – and with shopping – has fundamentally changed.
The GLP-1 era is still in its early stages – but as programs like Amazon’s new GLP-1 management program expand access, these drugs are likely to continue reshaping shopping behavior in the months and years ahead. The data points to a consumer who is eating differently, moving more, and spending in ways that reflect a new set of priorities, further amplifying the focus on health and wellness that has emerged over the past several years.
For more data-driven retail and dining insights, visit Placer.ai/anchor.
Sports leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB boast billion-dollar revenues – and the venues where these games unfold hold significant commercial potential in their own rights. Many stadiums host concerts and other shows in addition to regularly held sporting matches and can accommodate tens of thousands of spectators at once – creating massive retail, dining, and advertisement opportunities.
This white paper analyzes location intelligence metrics for some of the biggest stadiums across the country to reveal the commercial potential of these venues beyond simple ticketing revenue. Where do visitors of various stadiums like to shop? Do specific sporting and cultural events impact the nearby restaurant scene differently? How can stadium operators, local businesses, and advertisers tailor their offerings to a stadium’s particular audience and make the most of the stadium and the space throughout the year?
We take a closer look below.
The three major sports leagues – the National Basketball League (NBA), Major League Baseball (MLB), and the National Football League (NFL) – play at different points of the year, and the number of games each league holds during the season also varies.
MLB leads in game frequency, with each team playing 162 games during the regular season, which runs approximately from April through September. Basketball season is also around six months – roughly from mid-October to mid-April – but each NBA team plays only 82 games a season. And the NFL has both the shortest season – 18 weeks running from early September to early January (with the pre-season starting in August) – and the fewest number of matches per team. Understanding the monthly visitation patterns for the various types of stadiums can help advertisers, stadium operators, and other stakeholders ensure that they are leveraging the full potential of the venue throughout the year.
Unsurprisingly, the sports arenas serving the different leagues see visit spikes during their leagues’ respective season. But comparing visit numbers throughout the year to the average monthly visit numbers for each category in 2023 reveals that the relative visit increases and decreases during the on- and off-season vary for each type of stadium.
MLB stadiums display the steadiest visit strength during the on-season – perhaps due to MLB’s packed game schedule. MLB tickets also tend to be relatively affordable compared to tickets to pro football or basketball matches, which may also contribute to MLB’s consistently strong visit numbers throughout the season. During the MLB off-season, baseball fields – which tend to be uncovered – are relatively empty.
The seasonal visit spike to NBA arenas is less steady. The beginning and end of the season see strong peaks, and visits slow down slightly during the mid-season months of January and February. Visits then drop during the off-season spring and summer, but the off-season visit dip is not as low as it is for MLB fields – perhaps because the NBA arenas’ indoor nature make them suitable locations for concerts and other non-basketball events.
Meanwhile, NFL stadiums see the least dramatic drop in visits during the NFL off-season, as these venues’ enormous size also make them the ideal location for concerts and other cultural events that draw large crowds. These arenas’ strong almost year-round visitation numbers mean that sponsors and advertisers looking to expand beyond sports fans to reach a diverse audience may have the most success with these venues.
Although MLB offers the most budget-friendly outing, combining STI: Popstats demographic metrics with trade area data reveals that MLB stadium visitors reside in higher-income areas when compared with visitors to NBA or NFL stadiums.
Baseball fans tend to be older than fans of the other sports, which could partially explain MLB stadium visitors’ higher household income (HHI). The combination of lower ticket prices, higher median HHI among fans, and many games per season offers baseball stadiums significant opportunities to engage effectively with their fan bases.
But while NBA and NFL stadium attendees may not come from as high-income areas as do MLB stadium visitors, fans of live basketball and football still reside in trade areas with a higher HHI compared to the nationwide median. So by leveraging stadium space, advertisers and other stakeholders can reach tens of thousands of relatively high-income consumers easily and effectively.
Sports fans are known to be passionate, engaged, and willing to spend money on their team – but stadium visitors also shop for non-sports related goods and services. Retailers and advertisers can draw on location analytics to uncover the consumer preferences of stadium visitors and tailor campaigns, sponsorships, and collaborations accordingly.
Visitation data to the top five most visited MLB stadiums during 2023 showed differences between the apparel and sporting goods shopping preferences of the various stadiums’ attendees. While 39.4% of visitors to Truist Park also visited DICK’s in 2023, only 30.8% of Yankee Stadium visitors stopped by the sporting goods retailer in the same period. Similarly, while 29.9% of visitors to Yankee Stadium frequented Kohl’s, that percentage jumped to 47.3% for Busch Stadium visitors.
Harnessing location intelligence to see the consumer preferences of a stadium’s visitor base can help retailers, stadium operators, and even team managers choose partnerships and merchandising agreements that will yield the most effective results.
Sports and snacks go hand in hand – what would a baseball game be without a hot dog or peanuts? But while every stadium likely provides a similar core of traditional game day eats, each venue also offers a unique set of dining options, both on- and off-premise. And by leveraging location analytics to gain visibility into stadium-goers dining habits, stadium operators and local food businesses can understand how to best serve each arena’s audience.
Mapping where stadium visitors dine before and after games can help stakeholders in the stadium industry reach more fans.
The chart below shows the share of visitors coming to a stadium from a dining venue (on the x-axis) or going to a dining venue after visiting the stadium (on the y-axis). The data reveals a correlation between pre-stadium dining and post-stadium dining – stadiums where many guests visit dining venues before the stadium also tend to have a large share of guests going to dining venues after the event. For example, the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, saw large shares of visitors grabbing a bite to eat on their journey to or from the stadium, while the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland saw low rates of pre- and post stadium dining engagement.
These trends present opportunities for both local businesses and stadium stakeholders. For example, venues with high dining engagement can explore partnerships with local restaurants, while those with lower rates can build out their in-house dining options for hungry sports fans.
Stadiums looking to enhance their food offerings – or local entrepreneurs thinking of opening a restaurant near a stadium – can also get inspired by stadium visitors’ dining preferences. For example, psychographic data taken from the Spatial.ai: FollowGraph dataset reveals that visitors to MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey have a much stronger preference for Asian cuisine compared to New Jersey residents overall. With that knowledge, the stadium can enhance the visitor experience by expanding its Asian food offerings.
On the other hand, MetLife Stadium goers seem much less partial to Brewery fare than average New Jerseyans, so the stadium operators and restaurateurs may want to avoid offering too many Brewery-themed dining options. Stadium stakeholders can reserve the craft beers for Caesars Stadium, M&T Bank Stadium, and Soldier Field Stadiums, where visitors seem to enjoy artisanal brews more than the average resident in Louisiana, Maryland, and Illinois, respectively.
All of the stadiums analyzed exhibited unique visitor dining tastes, a reminder that no customer or fan base is alike. Aligning on- or off-site dining options with offerings that align with a given customer base’s preferences can improve overall visitor satisfaction and boost revenues.
Zooming in to look at consumer behavior around individual events reveals further variability in dining preferences even among visitors to the same stadium, with different types of events driving distinct dining behaviors.
State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, is home to the Arizona Cardinals. The stadium hosted the 2023 Super Bowl, but the NFL stadium also acts as a concert venue for acts ranging from Taylor Swift to Metallica. And location intelligence reveals that the dining preferences of stadium visitors vary based on the events held at the venue.
During the Super Bowl, sports bars such as Yard House and Buffalo Wild Wings saw the largest increase in visits compared to the chains’ daily average. A month later, attendees at Taylor Swift's concert gave fried-chicken leader Raising Cane’s a significant boost.
Local restaurants can leverage location analytics to see what types of events are popular with their visitor base and craft collaborations and advertising campaigns that resonate effectively with their patrons.
Sports stadiums and arenas are not just spaces for sports and music enthusiasts to gather; they also offer significant commercial opportunities for the surrounding communities. Stadium operators and local businesses can fine-tune their offerings by utilizing location analytics to better connect with their visitor bases and uncover new retail opportunities.
The dining industry showcased its agility over the past couple of years as it rapidly adapted to shifts in consumer preference brought on by COVID and rising prices. And with a new year around the corner, the pace of change shows no signs of slowing down.
This white paper harnesses location analytics, including visitation patterns, demographic data, and psychographic insights, to explore the trends that will shape the dining space in 2024. Which dining segments are likely to pull ahead of the pack? How are chains responding to changes in visitor behavior? And where are brands driving dining foot traffic by taking advantage of a new advertising possibility? Read on to find out how dining leaders can tap into emerging trends to stay ahead of the competition in 2024.
Comparing quarterly visits in 2023 and 2022 highlights the impact of the ongoing economic headwinds on the dining industry. The year started off strong, with year-over-year (YoY) dining visits up overall in Q1 2023 – perhaps aided by the comparison to an Omicron-impacted muted Q1 2022. And while overall dining growth stalled in Q2 2023, several segments – including QSR, Fast Casual, and Coffee – continued posting YoY visit increases, likely bolstered by consumers trading down from pricier full-service concepts.
Foot traffic slowed significantly in Q3 2023 as inflation and tighter consumer budgets constrained discretionary spending. Overall dining visits fell 2.4% YoY, and full-service restaurants – with their relatively high price point compared to other dining segments – seemed to be particularly impacted by the wider economic outlook. But the data also revealed some bright spots: Fast Casual still succeeded in maintaining positive YoY visit numbers and Coffee saw its Q3 visit grow an impressive 5.4% YoY. As the return to office continues, a pre-work coffee run or lunchtime foray to a fast-casual chain may continue propelling the two segments forward.
Restaurant visitation patterns have evolved over the past few years. Although an 8 PM seating was once the most coveted slot at fine-dining restaurants, recent visitation data suggests that sitting down to dinner earlier is rising in popularity.
But among the QSR segment, the opposite trend is emerging, with late-night visits rising. Analyzing hourly foot traffic to several major QSR chains reveals that the share of visits between 9 PM and 12 AM increased significantly between Q3 2019 and Q3 2023. Even Taco Bell – already known for its popularity among the late-night crowd – saw a substantial increase in late-night visits YoY – from 15.4% to 20.3%.
Who is driving the late night visit surge? One reason restaurants have been expanding their opening hours is to capture more Gen-Z diners, who tend to seek out nighttime dining options. But location intelligence reveals that younger millennials are also taking advantage of the later QSR closing times.
An analysis of the captured market for trade areas of top locations within one of Taco Bell’s major markets – the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI Metropolitan area – reveals a year-over-four-year (Yo4Y) increase in “Singles & Starters.” The “Singles & Starters” segment is defined by Experian: Mosaic as young singles and starter families living in cities who are typically between 25 and 30 years old. As consumers continue to prioritize experiential entertainment and going out with friends, late-night dining may continue to see increased interest from young city-dwellers.
Millennials and Gen-Z consumers aren’t only heading to their favorite fast food joint for a late-night bite – these audience segments are also helping drive visits on the weekends. Smoothie King is one chain feeling the benefits of young, health-conscious consumers.
The chain, which opened in New Orleans, LA, in 1973 as a health food store, has since grown to over 1,100 locations nationwide and is currently expanding, focusing on the Dallas-Fort Worth CBSA. The area’s Smoothie King venues have seen strong visitation patterns, particularly on the weekends – weekend visits were up 3.4% YoY in Q3 2023. The smoothie brand’s trade areas in the greater Dallas region is also seeing a YoY increase in weekend visits from “Young Professionals” – defined by the Spatial.ai PersonaLive dataset as “well-educated young professionals starting their careers in white-collar or technical jobs.”
While some dining chains are appealing to the late-night or weekend crowd, others are driving visits by appealing to sports lovers. How have recent rule changes around student athletes changed the restaurant game, and how can college football teams drive business in their hometowns?
College sports have long been a major moneymaker, with top-tier teams raking in billions of dollars annually. And as of 2021, college athletes can enjoy a piece of the significant fan following of college sports thanks to the change in the NCAA’s Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rules, which now allows student athletes to sign endorsement deals.
Since then, multiple restaurants have jumped on the opportunity to partner with student athletes, some of whom have millions of followers on Instagram and TikTok. Chains like Chipotle, Sweetgreen, Slim Chickens, and Hooters have all signed college athletes to various brand deals.
How can brands ensure they partner with athletes their customers will want to engage with? Analyzing a chain’s audience by looking at the interests of residents in a given chain’s trade area can reveal which type of athlete will be the most attractive to each brand’s customer base. For example, data from Spatial.ai: Followgraph provides insight into the social media activity of consumers in a given trade area and can highlight desirable partnerships.
Examining the trade areas of Chipotle, Sweetgreen, Slim Chickens, and Hooters, for instance, reveals that Sweetgreen’s visitors tended to have the largest share of Women’s Soccer followers. Conversely, Sweetgreen’s trade area had lower-than-average shares of College Football Fans or College Basketball Fans, while residents of the trade areas of the other three chains showed greater-than-average interest in these sports. Leveraging location intelligence can help companies choose brand deals that their customers resonate with and find the ideal athletes to represent the chain.
Finding the right college athlete partnership is one way for dining brands to appeal to college sports enthusiasts. But dining chains and venues located near major college stadiums also benefit from the popularity of their local team by enjoying a major game day visit boost.
One of the country’s most popular college football teams, the Ohio State Buckeyes, can draw millions of TV viewers, and its stadium has a capacity of 102,780 – one of the largest stadiums in the country. And while tailgating is a popular activity for Buckeyes fans, nearby restaurants are some of the biggest beneficiaries of the college football craze. Panera experienced a 235.3% increase on game days as compared to a typical day, Domino’s Pizza visits grew by 283.3%, and Tommy’s Pizza, a local pie shop, saw its visits jump by a whopping 600.9%.
This influx in diners also causes a major shift in game day visitor demographics, as revealed by changes in visitors at dining venues located near stadiums of two of the nation’s best college football teams – the Ohio State Buckeyes and Ole Miss Rebels. Based on Spatial.ai: Personalive data for the captured market of these dining venues, game day visitors tended to come from “Ultra Wealthy Families” when compared to visitors during a typical non-game day in September or October.
The analysis indicates that popular sporting events create a unique opportunity for restaurants near college stadiums to attract high-income customers game day after game day, year after year.
While some spend game day tailgating or visiting a college restaurant, others hold a viewing party – with a six-foot submarine. And the sub’s popularity extends beyond Superbowl Sundays. Sandwich chains including Jersey Mike’s, Firehouse Subs, Jimmy John’s, and Subway (recently purchased by the same company that owns Jimmy John’s) have seen sustained YoY increases in visits and visits per venue in the first three quarters of 2023.
Some of the growth to these chains may be related to their affordability, a draw at all times but especially during a period marked by consumer uncertainty and rising food costs. And subway leaders seem to be seizing the moment and striking while the iron is hot – Jersey Mike’s opened 350 stores in 2023 and still saw its YoY visits per venue grow by 6.6%. And Subway reported ten consecutive quarters of positive sales, a promising sign for its new owner.
The love for a healthy, affordable sandwich extends across all income levels, with all four chains seeing a range in their visitors' median household income (HHI). Out of the four chains analyzed, Jersey Mike’s – which has long prioritized a suburban, middle-income customer – had the highest trade area median household income of the four chains at $77.3K/year. Subway, known for its affordability, had the lowest, with $62.9K/year. The variance in median HHI combined with the strong foot traffic growth shows that when it comes to sandwiches, there’s something for everyone.
Persistent inflation and declining consumer sentiment may pose serious challenges for the dining space, but emerging trends are helping boost some restaurants. Customers seeking out a late-night bite drive visits to QSR chains, and health-conscious diners are boosting foot traffic to smoothie bars and sandwich shops. Meanwhile, sports sponsorships and game-day restaurant visits can provide a boost to dining businesses that take advantage of these opportunities.
“Retail media networks have turned retailers into ad moguls. That’s a huge change and nobody yet understands all the implications of it.”
Constantine von Hoffman, MARTECH
Companies operating consumer-facing brick-and-mortar venues traditionally relied on selling goods and services as their primary revenue stream. But recently, leading retailers such as Walmart and Target have begun to leverage their immense store fleet into a powerful advertising platform.
Online retailers have been tapping into the advertising power of their digital sites for years by relying on various automated tools to show third-party advertisements to relevant consumer segments. But now, retailers with a strong offline presence can also leverage physical marketing impressions and focus their campaigns while reaching consumers at the point of purchase. Retailers have long recognized the intent that drives a store visit, and understanding the full value of leveraging that visit to its full extent is an important new frontier.
Major retailers are continuing to see their physical visits outnumber their online ones.
And in spite of the gloomy predictions regarding the future of brick and mortar retail, major retailers are continuing to see their physical visits outnumber their online ones. Monthly numbers of visitors to Walmart and Target significantly outpace the brands’ online reach, according to web data from Similarweb. So although, up until recently, these brands have focused their media placements on their digital channels, it is becoming increasingly clear that these chains’ physical stores hold powerful – and currently untapped – advertising potential.
Online visitor data source: similarweb.com
And with the recent rise in digital advertising costs, retail media networks are becoming more attractive for companies looking to make the most of their ad budget. Retail media networks can also help brands reach rural communities, elderly Americans, and other consumer segments that are currently underserved by digital advertisers.
This white paper explores several retailers on the cutting edge of the retail media network revolution. Keep reading to find out how advertisers can use retail media networks to promote to hard-to-reach consumers, segment their ad spending, and optimize their campaigns.
Residents of rural areas use the internet less frequently, and have lower levels of technology ownership than their urban and suburban counterparts. As a result, companies that stick to digital advertising may have a harder time reaching rural consumers. Brick and mortar retailers popular in smaller markets can fill in the gaps and help brands promote their products and services to this hard-to-reach audience.
Brick and mortar retailers popular in smaller markets can help brands advertise to hard-to-reach audiences.
Dollar General saw significant success over the pandemic, with the current economic climate continuing to benefit the brand. Between January and August 2022, nationwide visits to Dollar General venues were 35.6% higher than they were between January and August 2019, while the number of visitors increased 25.4% in the same period.Visit numbers aggregate the visits to the chain’s various locations in a given period, while visitor numbers track the number of people who enter the brand’s stores.
The company has also been operating a media network since 2018. The Dollar General Media Network (DGMN) enables advertisers to reach Dollar General consumers across the company’s channels to build awareness both digitally and in physical spaces. Advertisers with DGMN can display in-store bollard, blade, and wipe stand signs, security pedestals, basket bottomers, and shelfAdz to deliver in-store messaging from parking lot to purchase. Recently, Dollar General announced that its ad platform was now working with 21 new advertising partners, including Unilever, General Mills, Hershey’s, and Colgate-Palmolive.
Embracing the Power of the Small Market
Advertising partners can leverage the DGMN to promote their goods and services to harder-to-reach consumers.
Dollar General has been serving rural residents for years, with the majority of the company’s stores located in communities with fewer than 20,00 residents. And while the brand is growing nationwide, Dollar General’s strength is particularly evident in small markets – which means that advertising partners can leverage the DGMN to promote their goods and services to harder-to-reach consumers.
Comparing year-over-three-year (Yo3Y) visit change to Dollar General stores in metropolitan and micropolitan core based statistical areas (CBSAs) highlights the company’s success in smaller markets. According to the United States Office of Management and Budget, metropolitan and micropolitan CBSAs have over and under 50,000 residents, respectively. Since January 2022, monthly Yo3Y visit growth to Dollar General venues in select Texas micropolitans has consistently outpaced foot traffic to nearby metropolitan areas. While the Sherman-Denison metro area saw August 2022 foot traffic hit a solid 24.5% increase over August 2019, the Gainesville, Texas micro area – around 35 miles east of Sherman – saw its foot traffic increase 54.5% in the same period.
Dollar General’s presence across a significant number of smaller markets means that advertising partners can use the growing DGMN to increase awareness and drive purchase consideration among these harder-to-reach consumers.
In the digital space, three tech giants – Alphabet (previously Google), Meta (previously Facebook), and Amazon – enjoy over 60% of the digital ad revenue in the United States. This means that companies are competing for impressions on a small number of platforms – and smaller brands geared at specific consumer segments may need to spend significant advertising budgets to outbid the larger players. Retail media networks create additional advertising platforms, and enable advertisers to diversify their ad spend, increase their (physical) impressions, focus on more specialized channels to better reach their audience, and potentially reach customers at their highest point of intent.
Retail media networks create additional advertising platforms and potentially reach customers at their highest point of intent.
Albertsons launched its retail media network, Albertsons Media Collective, in November 2021 with the goal of delivering “digitally native, shopper-centric and engaging branded content to the company’s ever-growing network of shoppers.” Currently, the grocer’s media network is primarily digital, but Albertsons’ head of retail media products Evan Hovorka recognizes the importance of leveraging in-store assets to deliver a unique advertising experience. The company is testing out smart carts that link with “Albertsons for U” loyalty program to display ads to shoppers – and Albertsons is likely to find more ways to reach in-store consumers as it continues to develop its retail media network.
The chain is also one of the most popular grocers nationwide. With the exception of March and April 2022, when inflation and high gas prices temporarily halted growth, the brand’s monthly visits and visitor numbers have consistently exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Monthly visits for Albertsons in August 2022 were up 5.7% and monthly visitors were up 5.4% on a Yo3Y basis. This means that advertisers with Albertsons can increase their reach and grow their physical ad impressions just by displaying their ads in Albertsons locations and tapping into the chain’s growing visitor base.
Looking beyond Albertsons' nationwide average foot traffic trends reveals some important regional differences. Between January and July 2022, visits to the brands increased 4.6% in Wyoming on a Yo3Y basis, while foot traffic to the brand’s locations in Oregon jumped 18.5% compared to January through July 2019. This means that a brand looking to reach consumers in Oregon can contract with Albertsons’ media network to show its ads to a fast-growing pool of visitors.
A larger visitor count translates to an increase in unique ad impressions, while more visits from fewer visitors can drive repeated exposures.
Diving deeper into the data reveals an additional layer of insight. Some states with only moderate visit growth are seeing a surge in visitor numbers, while other states are seeing a drop in visitor numbers but a rise in visits. A larger visitor count translates to an increase in unique ad impressions and more people exposed to the ads, while more visits from fewer visitors translates to more overall impressions that can drive repeated exposure among a smaller group of visitors. So advertisers can use segmented foot traffic data to decide where to focus their marketing depending on the goal of the campaign.
For example, Wyoming's moderate increase in visits hides a significant spike in visitors, which means that advertisers to Albertsons venues in Wyoming can get their impressions before a large number of different potential consumers. Meanwhile, Oregon's 18.5% increase in visits is the result of just a 9.4% increase in visitors – so Albertsons is cultivating an increasingly loyal following in the Beaver State, and the grocer’s advertising partners can expect that the same visitors will be exposed to their brand repeatedly.
So companies that want to increase unique ad impressions and build awareness can advertise to Albertsons customers in Wyoming, where their ads will be seen by a large number of new people. But in Oregon, companies may want to promote a campaign that focuses on moving Albertsons visitors through their funnel.
In order to accurately assess the ad distribution patterns in each location, brands operating retail media networks need to understand both visits and visitors trends in each region and for the chain as a whole.
Advertisers with retail media networks can use foot traffic data to refine their geographic audience by identifying the consumer preferences of a given brick-and-mortar brand on a store or city level.
In August 2020, CVS Pharmacy launched its media network, the CVS Media Exchange (cMx). The company estimates that 76% of U.S. consumers live within five miles of at least one store, and the cMx allows partners to tap into the chain’s reach by giving advertisers access to CVS’ online and offline channels, including in-store ads.
Although CVS has been closing locations recently, the brand is still one of the strongest players in the brick-and-mortar retail space. Its 2022 visit numbers have consistently exceeded pre-pandemic levels nationwide, and data from CVS locations in leading cities shows that its Yo3Y visits per venue and visitor numbers are even higher.
CVS’s nationally distributed fleet means that the brand’s locations in different regions attract distinct consumer bases.
CVS carries a varied product mix of daily essentials in addition to its healthcare offerings, so the brand attracts a wide range of consumer segments. And the chain’s nationally distributed store fleet means that CVS has locations in different regions that attract distinct consumer bases who do not all have the same lifestyle preferences. By using foot traffic data to understand the regional consumer preferences of CVS consumers beyond the store, advertising partners can refine their market and make the most of the cMx.
Different regions have different fitness cultures. Chains catering to health-conscious consumers can use retail media networks and foot traffic data to focus their efforts on areas where inhabitants exhibit a high demand for regular workouts.
Analyzing cross-visit data from CVS locations across five major urban centers in the U.S. shows that the percentage of those who also visited gyms or fitness studios varied significantly across each DMA. In the New York area, 62.7% of those who visited CVS in Q2 2022 also visited a fitness venue during that period, in contrast with only 38.0% of CVS visitors around Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX in the same period. This information can help advertising partners in the health and wellness space decide where to place their campaigns.
Looking at cross-visit data on a city-wide level can provide a sense of the consumer culture in each area, but advertisers that dive into foot traffic data for individual stores can refine their messaging even further.
On average, 43.8% of CVS visitors in the Chicago DMA also visited a gym in Q2 2022. But drilling down to the top CVS locations in the city reveals that the rate of cross-visits varies significantly from location to location. Both the E 53rd Street and W 103rd Street locations have a relatively high share of visitors who visit fitness locations – 52.5% and 49.2%, respectively. Meanwhile fitness cross-visits were at just 36.6% for the South Stony Island Avenue location. Advertisers promoting health and wellness related products and services may want to focus on the 103rd St. and 53rd St. CVS locations.
Diving into a customer’s behavior and preferences outside the store can help retail media network operators and advertising partners find the areas and locations best suited for each type of ad.
Cross-visit data is one way to identify consumer preferences beyond the physical store. Advertisers can also analyze digital preferences of offline visitors to focus their marketing on the most appropriate locations.
Advertisers can also analyze digital preferences of offline visitors to focus on the most appropriate locations.
Over the past couple of years, Macy’s has been finding ways to reinvent itself and optimize its store fleet – and foot traffic data indicates that the retailer's efforts are paying off. In the first half of 2022, Macy’s exceeded its H1 2021 overall visit and average visits per venue numbers and posted a positive year-over-year (YoY) visitor count. In Q2 2022, despite the wider economic challenges, Macy’s visitors, visits, and average visits per venue saw YoY increases of 3.4%, 4.0% and 9.9% increases.
Like CVS, Macy’s launched its media network in August 2020, and by February 2021 the Macy’s Media Network was already generating $35 million annually. In addition to advertising on the company’s digital channels, Macy’s also offers partners the use of in-store screen displays, package inserts, and the brand’s iconic billboard in New York City’s Herald Square.
Advertisers can optimize their advertising by analyzing the differences in consumer profiles between a chain’s various stores.
Advertisers that understand the differences in consumer profiles between a chain’s various stores can optimize their advertising efforts. While looking at variations in cross-visit trends is one way to identify interested brick-and-mortar consumers, diving into visitor’s digital behavior and online preferences can also provide valuable insights.
Tools such as Spatial.ai’s GeoWeb, which tracks online engagement with various trends and topics by neighborhood, can reveal how offline consumers behave online. An index score of 100 indicates that consumers in an area have an average interest in a given topic, while scores over (or under) 100 indicate that consumers are more (or less) interested in the topic when compared to the national average interest.
We used Spatial.ai’s GeoWeb tool to analyze the online behavior of consumers in the True Trade Areas (TTA) of five Macy’s locations in the Philadelphia, PA DMA – and found that residents of the different TTAs stores showed differing indexes. For example, the Macy’s in the King of Prussia Mall location showed a high index of 161 in “Men’s Business Clothes Shoppers,” while the Cottman Ave. location had an only slightly above average index of 102. This means that advertisers of men’s business apparel may see more results by focussing their advertising on visitors to the King of Prussia location.
Advertisers that use retail media networks do a lot more than just reach in-store shoppers. Stores exist in the physical world, so advertisers can also reach passers-by through physical venues’ windows, blade signs – or in the case of Macy’s, through its Herald Square Billboard. Here too, foot traffic data can reveal the consumer preferences of people walking by the sign.
We looked at the online behavior in the TTA around the traffic pin on the corner where the billboard is located (Broadway/6th Ave and 34th Street in New York) to understand which advertisers might benefit most from a billboard at that location. While the “Men’s Business Clothes Shoppers” category was over-indexed compared to the national average, as would be expected in midtown Manhattan, “Women’s Fashion Brand Shoppers” had an even higher index. “Gen Z Apparel Shoppers” were over-represented, but “Leather Good Shoppers” and ”Athleisure Shoppers” were under-represented. So a brand that carries both elegant wear and athleisure may want to display its less casual clothing lines on the billboard.
Understanding how consumers behave both on and offline can help retail media networks and advertising partners promote their campaigns most effectively.
To transform their physical store fleet into a media network, brands and companies need to analyze the reach of each venue. The same chain operating in multiple regions may be reaching different types of consumers in each area, or even in various neighborhoods of the same city. These distinct audiences may have contrasting products, brands, and shopping preferences.
Retailers that leverage their brick and mortar presence can transform the advertisement space as it exists today.
Retailers can also partner with advertising partners who wish to promote goods and services not carried by the retailer. For this to succeed, the retailer will need to analyze how consumers behave outside of its stores. Understanding what characterizes the overall behavior of consumers in each locations’ trade area will allow the retailer to reach a larger audience and truly compete with the digital giants. And by leveraging their brick and mortar presence, brick and mortar retail can transform the advertisement space as it exists today.
