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As we discussed before the 2024 holiday season began, timing was expected to play a crucial role in its success for retailers. With one less week between Thanksgiving and Christmas, retailers faced the challenge of consolidating promotions and focusing on attracting repeat visits and increasing conversion rates to match last year’s performance. But another factor influencing holiday timing is the elongation of seasonal offerings and promotions, which now extend well into October. While there’s no industry-wide standard for when the holiday season officially begins, it’s clear that many retailers recognize the value of starting their campaigns in October and early November to maximize engagement and sales.
When analyzing visitation trends throughout the holiday season, the narrative shifts depending on the time frame considered. From Black Friday through Christmas Eve, most categories experienced double-digit traffic declines compared to last year, partly due to the shorter holiday season. But focusing on the period between October and the Wednesday before Thanksgiving reveals that visitation to many categories increased by double digits compared to last year. While this time frame includes an additional week this year, it’s evident that some demand shifted into the earlier part of the holiday season.
And when looking at performance for the extended holiday season as a whole – from October 1 through Christmas Eve – year-over-year traffic performance improved across the board, with many categories actually showing growth compared to 2023.
There was particularly strong performance in discretionary categories during October and early November, including luxury department stores, beauty chains, and home furnishing retailers. These early gains provided the momentum many chains needed to help offset the impact of the shorter traditional holiday season.
The extended shopping season successfully contributed to overall traffic growth for many retail sectors and may signal that consumers are willing – and able – to start their holiday shopping earlier if the right products and promotions are available.
The beverage and alcohol (BevAlc) segment has enjoyed a strong showing over the past few years. Bar and other nightlife destinations were closed throughout the pandemic, driving foot traffic to the BevAlc retailers – a trend that has sustained itself since.
We take a closer look at the category to see how special calendar milestones drive visits to BevAlc retailers.
Visits to BevAlc retailers were up YoY during most months of 2024, showcasing the continued popularity of the category. And while December 2024 visits were slightly lower YoY – like due to the month having one fewer Saturday compared to December 2023 – diving deeper into the data reveals that the holidays remain the segment’s busiest time of the year.
Celebrations and holiday gatherings often call for a festive drink – and the data confirms that the holiday season drives massive visit spikes.
Of the eleven busiest days for BevAlc retailers in 2024, six fell in December, with New Year’s Eve leading the pack with a staggering 164.8% visit increase compared to the 2024 daily average. Other major drivers included Christmas Eve, Turkey Wednesday, and Christmas Eve-Eve (December 23rd, the day before Christmas), with visits growing between 131.9% and 145.2% relative to the 2024 daily visit average.
And given that some states restrict liquor sales on Sundays, the Fridays and Saturdays ahead of retail milestones were also significant drivers of liquor store visits. Six of the top eleven days for BevAlc retailers in 2024 fell on a Friday or Saturday, including the Saturday before Memorial Day and the Saturday before Father’s Day.
These patterns emphasize that while December remains the highlight of the year for BevAlc retailers, other celebratory periods throughout the year can also drive substantial visitation spikes.
A closer look at the data over the years highlights several important holiday season trends. New Year’s Eve consistently receives the largest daily spike in BevAlc retailers visits, with one notable exception. In 2023, Super Saturday – the last Saturday before Christmas – coincided with Christmas Eve Eve, driving a major retail and grocery boost across the board. Additionally, Christmas Eve, typically the second-largest day for BevAlc retailers visits in the year, fell on a Sunday in 2023, when liquor sales are restricted in some states and territories.
This combination of factors led to an unusually large spike in visits to liquor stores on December 23, 2023, or Super Saturday/Christmas Eve Eve – 198.5% higher than the 2023 daily visit average between January and October 2023. It was also the only year in our analysis where BevAlc retailers received more visits before Christmas than in the lead-up to New Year’s.
Another trend highlighted by the longer-term visit analysis is the consistent downward trajectory of visits. In 2019, visits to BevAlc retailers in the lead-up to New Year’s were 193.4% higher than the 2019 daily visit average – a figure that had declined to 164.8% by 2024. This decrease may reflect various factors, including the rising popularity of alcohol delivery services and growing interest in the sober-curious lifestyle.
Still, the holiday season remains the most critical period for the BevAlc segment – though BevAlc retailers may want to consider stocking up on low- or alcohol-free beverages to keep up with changing consumer trends.
Raising a glass to a special occasion is a time-honored tradition, whether it’s with a festive spiked eggnog, whiskey, or alcohol-free wine. With plenty of opportunities to gather throughout the holiday season, BevAlc retailers can raise a toast to their own foot traffic gains as well.
For more data-driven retail insights, visit Placer.ai.
The Placer.ai Nationwide Office Building Index: The office building index analyzes foot traffic data from over 700 office buildings across the country. It only includes commercial office buildings, and commercial office buildings with retail offerings on the first floor (like an office building that might include a national coffee chain on the ground floor). It does NOT include mixed-use buildings that are both residential and commercial.
Return-to-office mandates are once again the talk of the town, with companies from Amazon to AT&T set to crack down on remote work in the new year – in some cases, demanding that workers show up in person five days a week.
But how did the office recovery shape up in December 2024? We dove into the data to find out.
December is typically a quiet month for offices, with many Americans taking time off for the holidays to enjoy vacations and family gatherings. So, it may come as no surprise that office visits in December 2024 dropped to their lowest point of the year.
Compared to December 2019, office visits in December 2024 lagged by 39.2% – a bigger visit gap than that seen in either November (37.8%) or October (34.0%), as employees likely embarked on extended “workations” and enjoyed greater WFH flexibility during the holiday season. Put another way, December 2024 office foot traffic clocked in at 60.8% of pre-pandemic (December 2019) levels.
Still, offices were busier this December than last – in December 2023, the recovery compared to December 2019 stood at just 57.2%.
New York and Miami once again led the regional return to office (RTO) charge with Yo5Y visit gaps of 19.6% and 20.9%, respectively – though both cities’ Yo5Y numbers were weaker than those seen in either October or November.
Atlanta (-34.1%) and Dallas (-35.2%) also outperformed the nationwide average for Yo5Y office foot traffic. And with Dallas-based companies like AT&T and Southwest Airlines starting to enforce stricter in-office policies in the new year, the Texas hub may experience even more accelerated recovery in the coming months. (AT&T also has a strong presence in Atlanta, which may also benefit from the company’s crackdown.)
Meanwhile, San Francisco, which has long lagged in post-pandemic office recovery, finally pulled out of last place in December 2024 with a Yo5Y visit gap of 48.0%, just edging out Chicago. The impressive YoY office visit growth seen by the West Coast hub in recent months – likely fueled in part by Salesforce’s recent RTO mandate – appears to have finally left a tangible mark on the city’s Yo5Y ranking.
Year over year (YoY), visits to office buildings nationwide were up 6.4% in December 2024 – showing that despite seasonal setbacks, office visits remain overall on an upward trajectory. Atlanta (13.7%) and Boston (12.1%) led the way for YoY office recovery, followed by Washington, D.C. (10.6%) and San Francisco (10.4%).
As additional RTO mandates go into effect in the new year, the office recovery needle may move once again. Will additional companies jump on the full-time in-office bandwagon – or will hybrid work models continue to dominate?
Follow placer.ai’s data-driven office index reports to find out.
David’s Bridal and JCPenney have both emerged from bankruptcy proceedings with revitalized operational strategies. We took a closer look at the latest visit trends for the brands and uncovered how the demographics of their audiences have changed along with their real estate footprints.
David’s Bridal closed a significant number of stores in the second half of 2023 as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, leading to a year-over-year (YoY) drop in visits in the first half of 2024. But although the impact of the previous year’s rightsizing weighed on YoY visit growth, the second half of the year marked a turning point. Lapping the mid-2023 period of aggressive store closures, visits rebounded in August 2024 (3.5% visit growth YoY), and stayed close to or exceeded the previous year’s levels through the end of 2024 (6.3% visit growth YoY), signaling a stabilization in consumer traffic.
David’s Bridal's YoY visits per location numbers showcase the brand's resilience even more clearly. Visits per location were near or exceeded 2023 levels for most of 2024, and saw significant lifts in summer and fall – the most popular wedding seasons. This trend suggests that the retailer’s slimmed-down store fleet remains relevant in the bridal and occasion-attire space, particularly during critical retail moments – and highlights the chain’s ability to drive increased traffic to a smaller real estate footprint. More recent initiatives such as the October 2024 launch of a revamped loyalty program and a December 2024 partnership with delivery giant DoorDash also bode well for the brand’s growth potential in 2025.
JCPenney accelerated a years-long fleet consolidation strategy when it emerged from bankruptcy in 2020 and completed the bulk of its rightsizing campaign by the end of 2021. In 2023, the retailer announced a $1 billion, multi-year reinvestment plan to make massive improvements to operations and the customer experience.
The strategic reinvestment appears to be working: Last year, JCPenney steadily closed its YoY visit and visits per location gaps, which shrank to just -3.0% and -1.8%, respectively in Q4 ‘24 – signaling a sustained foot traffic turnaround for the brand.
Several of JCPenney’s recent initiatives likely played a part in the brand’s upward foot traffic trajectory. During fiscal Q3, the brand invested $51 million in store operations – part of the $1 billion earmarked in 2023 – and saw positive results from a Thursday Night Football promotion and a revamped loyalty program. This indicates that JCPenney may be able to sustain its foot traffic momentum with additional campaigns and continued investment in its stores – and with the chain's recently announced merger with Forever 21, 2025 is looking particularly bright.
While both chains’ foot traffic is on the rise, analysis of David’s Bridal’s and JCPenney’s trade areas reveals a key difference in the two companies’ audience strategies.
In Q4 ‘22, the median household income (HHI) in the captured markets of David’s Bridal and JCPenney was lower than in their potential markets – meaning that both chains attracted visitors from the lower-income households within their wider trade areas. But by Q4 ‘24, David’s Bridal captured market had a higher HHI than its potential market – meaning that it was now attracting the more affluent residents within its trade area. Meanwhile, the median HHI in JCPenney’s captured market continued to fall short of the median HHI in its potential market – although both its captured and potential market HHI has increased over the years.
The now elevated median HHI of David’s Bridal’s captured market suggests that the brand’s rightsizing efforts are driving traffic from a higher-income audience to its remaining locations. And given the relatively high price of wedding gowns, the chain’s recent popularity among more affluent consumers offers another indication of David’s Bridal newfound strength. JCPenney, on the other hand, has stated its commitment to maintaining accessible price points in order to best serve “America’s working families” as the chain continues to attract the lower-income shoppers within its trade area.
The successful turnaround of JCPenney and David’s Bridal – despite their appeal to very different audiences – showcases the various paths available for retail resurgences in today’s consumer landscape.
David’s Bridal and JCPenney serve as powerful examples of how strategic rightsizing and targeted investments can drive a foot traffic turnaround. Both brands have leveraged smaller, optimized real estate footprints and successful promotional activity to boost visits per location and appeal to their target audiences.
For more data-driven retail insights, visit Placer.ai.
About the Placer 100 Index for Retail & Dining: The Placer 100 Index for Retail and Dining is a curated, dynamic list of leading chains that often serve as prime tenants for shopping centers and malls. The index includes chains from various industries, such as superstores, grocery, dollar stores, dining, apparel, and more. The goal of the index is to provide insight into the wider trends impacting the retail, dining and shopping center segments.
In December 2024, retail and dining visitation slowed slightly, with overall visits to the Placer 100 Retail & Dining Index down 0.8% year over year (YoY). The December dip was likely due in part to an extra Saturday last year – the busiest day of the week for many retail and dining chains.
But comparing overall visits in November and December 2024 to the same months in 2023 shows that visits to the Placer 100 Index remained on par with 2023 levels (+0.0%) during the last two months of the year. So despite headwinds and a shorter shopping season (just 28 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, compared to 33 last year), brick-and-mortar retail and dining establishments ultimately attracted the same number of holiday season visits, all told, as they did last year.
Ever since the launch of Chili’s Big Smasher Burger promotion in late April 2024, YoY visits to Chili’s have been on the rise, buoyed by diners eager to indulge in a full-service experience at a QSR price point. And in December 2024, the chain once again topped the Placer 100 rankings, with visits to the chain up an impressive 21.0% YoY – fewer Saturdays notwithstanding.
Fitness clubs also figured prominently on December’s Placer 100 list, as did budget mainstay Aldi – underscoring the continued robust demand for no-frills, value-oriented grocery offerings. Notably, Family Dollar saw a 4.2% YoY increase in average visits per location – potentially reflecting the success of parent company Dollar Tree’s rightsizing efforts. Meanwhile, Big Lots saw a 5.2% YoY visit bump, likely fueled by strong consumer interest in its liquidation sales.
But value wasn’t the only winner of this year’s holiday season. Upscale department store Nordstrom enjoyed a substantial YoY visit uptick in November and December 2024 – with overall visits to the chain rising 6.5%. This stands in sharp contrast to the wider department stores sector, which experienced a 3.2% decline during the same period.
A look at the demographic profile of Nordstrom’s captured market shows that the chain’s success is likely due in part to its affluent – and young – customer base. In November and December 2024, the median household income of the census block groups (CBGs) from which Nordstrom drew its shoppers – weighted to reflect the share of visitors from each CBG – stood at $113.1K, significantly higher than the $81.3K median for the wider department store space. Nearly a third of Nordstrom's captured market (27.4%) was composed of “Ultra Wealthy Families” – compared to 9.5% for the sector as a whole. And unlike other department stores, which were slightly less likely than average to attract “Young Professionals,” that segment made up 9.7% of Nordstrom’s captured market, well above the nationwide baseline of 5.8%. As Gen-Z leads the charge back to malls, Nordstrom’s robust foothold among younger consumers bodes well for its future success.
Like many department stores, Nordstrom relies on the holiday season to bolster its annual bottom line – in 2024, November and December visits accounted for nearly a quarter (22.5%) of the chain’s total visits for the year. A strong performance during these critical months is a positive signal of good things to come – and with the chain being taken private by its founding family, we may see moves aimed at further solidifying Nordstrom’s position in the months ahead.
Despite fewer shopping days, the 2024 holiday shopping season proved resilient – with overall visits to the Placer 100 Retail & Dining Index remaining on par with 2023 levels. While value chains continued to dominate the rankings, upscale retailers like Nordstrom also enjoyed significant success. What trends will the Placer 100 Index uncover in the new year?
Visit placer.ai to find out.
About the Mall Index: The Index analyzes data from 100 top-tier indoor malls, 100 open-air shopping centers (not including outlet malls) and 100 outlet malls across the country, in both urban and suburban areas. Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the country.
Malls demonstrated their resilience once again in 2024, will traffic to the three shopping formats essentially on par with 2023 levels despite the ongoing consumer headwinds. Indoor malls and open-air shopping centers even saw slight increases – of 1.5% and 1.7% year-over-year (YoY), respectively – while outlet malls experienced a minimal visit decline of 0.4%.
So although YoY visits dipped at all three mall formats in December 2024 – likely due to the month having one less Saturday than December 2023 – malls appear well positioned going into 2025.
The 2024 traffic performance of each format may be correlated with the income levels of the format’s visitor base. Open-air shopping centers, which received the largest YoY visit boost, also attracted the most affluent visitors who were likely less impacted by the ongoing consumer headwinds. Meanwhile outlet malls – which saw slight YoY traffic dips – drew visitors from areas with the lowest household income.
The holidays are particularly busy for shopping centers as consumers shop Black Friday discounts, meet mall Santas, buy gifts, and hang out with family and friends. But comparing average daily visits between Black Friday (November 11th) and New Years Eve (December 31st) with average daily visits during the rest of the year (January 1st to November 28th) reveals that the holiday boost is not distributed equally across the three mall formats.
Outlet malls received the largest Holiday-driven visit boost and Indoor malls came in at a close second, with visits during the holiday season up 59.3% and 57.0%, respectively. Open-air shopping centers lagged behind the other two formats, with daily visits up just 31.4% compared to the rest of the year.
Diving deeper into the data reveals that weekdays receive the largest lift, with weekday traffic at indoor and outlet malls during the holiday season up 63.0% and 66.4%, respectively, compared to the non-holiday season daily average.
The holidays don’t just drive an increase in traffic – dwell time at malls also tends to be longer between Black Friday and New Years Eve when compared to the rest of the year. Visit length at indoor and outlet malls increased by an average of 4.7 minutes, while dwell time at open-air shopping centers grew by an average of 3.1 minutes.
Malls’ holiday success proves once again that shopping centers continue to play an important role in the wider retail landscape. How will indoor malls, open-air shopping centers, and outlet malls perform in 2025?
Visit placer.ai to find out.
The full-service dining segment has experienced its fair share of challenges over the past few years, with pandemic-era closures, rising food and labor costs, and cutbacks in discretionary spending contributing to visit lags. In 2024, visits were down 0.2% year over year (YoY) and remained 8.4% below 2019 levels – a reflection of the significant number of venues that permanently closed over COVID and a testament to the industry's ongoing struggle to regain its pre-pandemic footing.
Yet, even in a difficult environment, some full-service restaurant (FSR) chains are thriving. These brands aren’t waiting for the industry to rebound – they're becoming trendsetters in their own right, proving that stand-out strategy is everything in a challenging market.
This white paper explores brands that are harnessing three key differentiators – fixed-price value offerings, elevated social experiences, and a laser focus on product – to drive full-service dining success in 2025.
One of the most defining trends over the past few years has been the unrelenting march of price increases. And as consumers continue to seek out ways to save, some chains are staying ahead of the pack with fixed-price value offerings that help diners squeeze out the very best bang for their buck.
Golden Corral, the all-you-can-eat buffet chain that lets kids under three eat for free, is one FSR that is benefiting from consumers’ current value orientation. Despite closing several locations in 2024, overall visits to the chain still tracked closely with 2023 levels, declining by just 0.5% – while the average number visits to each Golden Corral restaurant grew 3.8% YoY.
Golden Corral’s value proposition is resonating strongly with budget-conscious Americans eager to enjoy a wide variety of comfort foods at an affordable price. The chain’s visitors tend to come from trade areas with lower median household incomes (HHIs) than traditional full-service restaurant (FSR) diners. And these patrons are willing to travel to enjoy the chain’s value buffet offerings, many of which are situated in rural areas and may require a longer drive. In 2024, 25.2% of Golden Corral’s diners came from over 30 miles away – compared to just 19.2% for the wider FSR segment.
Golden Corral’s continued flourishing proves that in an era of rising costs, diners are willing to go the extra mile (literally) for a restaurant that delivers both quality and affordability.
Children’s party space and eatertainment destination Chuck E. Cheese has had a transformative few years. Following the retirement of its iconic animatronic band, the chain shifted its focus to a new membership model, announcing a revamped Summer of Fun pass in May 2024 – including unlimited visits over a two-month period, steep discounts on food, and up to 250 games per day. The pass proved incredibly popular, with YoY visits surging by 15.6% in May 2024, when the offer launched – a sharp turnaround from the YoY visit declines of the previous months. Recognizing the strong demand, Chuck E. Cheese extended the program year-round – and the strategy has paid off as YoY visits remained positive through the end of 2024.
A closer look at the data suggests that parents are making full use of their unlimited passes: The share of weekday visits was higher in H2 2024 than in H2 2023, likely due to families using their passes for weekday entertainment rather than reserving visits for weekends and special occasions.
At the same time, the share of repeat visitors – those frequenting the chain at least twice a month – also grew. Although these repeat visitors may not purchase additional gameplay beyond the flat fee, their more frequent on-site presence likely translates into increased sales of pizza and other menu items.
While value has been a major motivator for restaurant-goers in recent years, low prices aren’t the only drivers of FSR success. Brands offering unique experiences aimed at maximizing social interaction are also seeing outsized gains.
Though many of these more innovative venues tend to be on the more expensive side, they draw enthusiastic crowds willing to pony up for concepts that combine good food with fun social occasions. And some of the more successful ones bolster perceived value through offerings like fixed-price menus or club memberships.
Korean cuisine has been on the rise in recent years, with restaurants like Bonchon Chicken and GEN Korean BBQ House making significant waves in the dining space. Another chain drawing attention is KPOT Korean BBQ and Hot Pot, which began modestly in 2018 and has since expanded to over 150 locations nationwide.
Diners at KPOT can customize their meals by selecting from a variety of proteins, broths, sauces, and side dishes, known as banchan, while barbecuing or cooking in a hotpot at their table and sipping on the drinks from the menu’s extensive selection. And though pricier than Golden Corral, KPOT also offers an all-you-can-eat experience that lets customers squeeze the most value out of their indulgence.
Location intelligence shows that KPOT’s experiential dining model is resonating with customers: Since Q4 2019, the average number of visits to each KPOT location has risen steadily – even as the chain has grown its footprint – while the average dwell time has also increased. Indeed, rather than a quick dining stop, KPOT has become a destination for guests to linger, enjoying both food and drinks – and an interactive and social experience.
By positioning themselves as gathering places for fine wine aficionados, wine-club-focused concepts such as Postino WineCafe and Cooper’s Hawk Winery are also benefiting from today’s consumers’ emphasis on social experiences. The two upscale dining destinations offer club memberships that combine periodic wine releases with a variety of perks.
And the data suggests that the model is strongly resonating with diners. Both Postino and Cooper’s Hawk have grown their footprints over the past year, driving substantial YoY chain-wide visit increases while average visits per location grew as well – showing that the expansions and experiential offerings are meeting robust demand.
And analyzing the two chains’ captured markets shows that the wine club model enjoys broad appeal across a variety of audience segments.
Unsurprisingly, both wine clubs’ visitor bases include higher-than-average shares of affluent consumers with money to spend, including Experian: Mosaic’s “Power Elite”, “Booming with Confidence”, and “Flourishing Families” segments (the nation’s wealthiest families, as well as affluent suburban and middle-aged households). But the two chains also attract younger, more budget-conscious consumers – Postino, which has many downtown locations, is popular among “Singles and Starters”, while Cooper’s Hawk is popular among “Promising Families” - i.e. young couples with children.
The success of the two brands across various segments underscores the impact of a distinctive experience – especially when paired with a loyalty-boosting membership – in attracting today’s consumers.
Value offerings and unique experiences have the power to drive restaurant visits – but ultimately, a good meal in an inviting atmosphere is a draw in and of itself, as is shown by the success of First Watch and Firebirds Wood Fired Grill.
Breakfast-only restaurant First Watch excels at ambiance and menu innovation, changing up its offerings five times a year and striving to maintain a neighborhood feel at each of its locations.
First Watch has made a point of leaning into its strengths, eschewing discounts in favor of a consistently elevated dining experience and doubling down its strongest day part (weekend brunch), rather than trying to artificially drive up interest at other times.
And the strategy appears to be working: In 2024, visits to First Watch increased 6.6% YoY – with Saturdays and Sundays between 11:00 A.M. and 1:00 P.M. remaining its busiest dayparts by far. Visitors to First Watch also tend to linger over their meals more than at other breakfast chains – in 2024, the restaurant experienced an average dwell time of 54.9 minutes, significantly longer than the 48.7-minute average at other breakfast-focused restaurants.
By focusing on what matters most to its diners – innovative and exciting food and a welcoming atmosphere that allows patrons to enjoy their meals at a leisurely pace – First Watch is continuing to flourish.
Another chain that is growing its footprint and its audience on the strength of a menu and ambiance-focused approach is Firebirds Wood Fired Grill. The chain, known for its “polished casual” vibe and bold, unique flavors, added several new restaurants last year, leading to a 6.5% increase in overall visits. Over the same period, the average number of visits to each Firebirds location held steady – showing that the new restaurants aren’t cannibalizing existing business.
The chain’s success may rest, in part, on its locating its venues in areas rife with enthusiastic foodies. Data from Spatial.ai’s FollowGraph shows that in 2024, Firebird’s trade areas had significantly higher shares of “BBQ Lovers”, “Gourmet Burger Lovers,” and “Foodies” than the nationwide average. This suggests that Firebirds is attracting diners who prioritize the experience of eating – key for a chain that prides itself on putting good food first. The chain is also known for its welcoming decor and design – another aspect that may lead to its strong visit success.
Necessity often serves as the mother of invention, and challenging economic periods continue to spark new trends and innovations in the dining scene. From a heightened focus on value – drawing families and lower-HHI consumers willing to travel for a good deal – to the growing appeal of social dining and the timeless draw of good food – new trends are emerging to meet changing consumer expectations.
Stadiums and arenas – and the communities they call home – have a stake in cultivating engaged team fanbases eager to participate in live events. And venues and teams can employ a variety of strategies to strengthen their connection with fans and draw crowds to the stands.
In this report, we leverage location analytics and audience segmentation to uncover some of the ways that sports franchises and venues are driving engagement – attracting visitors from farther away and appealing to fans more likely to splurge on stadium fare. How does the signing of a star athlete impact arena visitor profiles? What happens to stadium visitation trends when a team’s performance improves dramatically? And how can teams and venues tailor their offerings to more effectively cater to visitor preferences?
We dove into the data to find out.
In sports, the signing of a star athlete can have a ripple effect across the organization, hometown, and league. In addition to driving up overall attendance at games, star power can impact everything from visit frequency to audience profile – and the buying power of stadium attendees.
Lionel Messi’s move to Inter Miami CF after decades of European play brought a foot traffic boost to Chase Stadium (formerly DRV PNK Stadium). But it also shifted the demographics of stadium visitors and increased the distance they traveled to attend a game.
At Inter Miami’s 2022 and 2023 home openers without Messi (he joined the team mid-season in 2023), only 6.4% and 5.3% of visitors to Chase Stadium came from over 250 miles away. But for the 2024 home opener with Messi on the squad, 31.3% of stadium visitors traveled more than 250 miles to attend.
The demographics of visitors at the home opener also changed with Messi on the team. Trade area data combined with the Spatial.ai: PersonaLive dataset reveals that the 2024 home opener received a smaller share of households in the “Near-Urban Diverse Families” (11.2%) and “Young Urban Singles” (7.2%) segments than the two previous years. Meanwhile, shares of “Sunset Boomers” (13.0%) and “Ultra Wealthy Families” (20.1%) increased, indicating that Messi brought an older and more affluent demographic of visitors to the stadium compared to previous years. Messi’s arrival has generated increased revenue for Inter Miami CF, Major League Soccer, and Apple TV+, which has exclusive streaming rights for MLS games. And an influx of affluent out-of-town visitors also has the potential to drive positive outcomes for tourism and employment in the Miami area.
Caitlin Clark’s WNBA debut was another star-powered game changer – this time for women’s basketball. After dazzling the sports world during her college basketball career, Caitlin Clark was drafted first overall to the Indiana Fever before the 2024 WNBA season. The superstar’s arrival has had a staggering economic impact on the city of Indianapolis and the Fever franchise, highlighting the benefit of a top athlete within the local community. However, Clark’s stardom also had a far-reaching impact on the league as a whole, adding tremendous value to the WNBA. Trade area analysis reveals that several WNBA arenas saw an uptick in visitor affluence when hosting the Fever with Clark in the lineup – likely driven in part by the elevated ticket prices associated with her appearances.
When the Minnesota Lynx hosted the Fever on July 14th, 2024, for example, the median HHI of Target Center’s captured market shot up to just over $93K/year, well above the median HHIs for the games immediately before and after that event. (A venue’s captured market refers to the census block groups (CBGs) from which it draws its visitors, weighted to reflect the share of visits from each one – and thus reflects the profile of the venue’s visitor base.) Similarly, the Fever’s away game against the Connecticut Sun on May 14th, 2024 at Mohegan Sun Arena drove a higher audience median HHI ($103.6K/year) than either of the Sun’s next two home games.
Having a superstar on the roster can drive positive outcomes locally and league-wide – but overall team success is the ultimate goal for any franchise. So it may come as no surprise that stadiums and arenas can drive engagement when their home teams perform well on the field or court. And teams that reverse their fortunes often spark even greater excitement, boosting visitor loyalty, visit duration, and other key metrics.
The Baltimore Orioles had one of the worst records in baseball just a few years ago. But since 2022, the team has flipped the script – stringing together winning seasons and postseason berths. And location intelligence shows that as the team finds success, fans are becoming more engaged with their hometown stadium.
During the 2019 regular season, one of the worst for the club in recent history, stadium attendance suffered, with only 8.3% of visitors to Oriole Park at Camden Yards visiting the stadium at least three times. But during the 2024 regular season, Oriole Park’s share of repeat visitors (those who visited at least three times) was almost double 2019 levels (16.3%) – consistent with a sharp increase in sales of multi-game ticket packages.
In addition to attending games more often, visitors to Oriole Park also appear to be spending more time at the ballpark. During the 2019 regular season, visitors spent an average of 150 minutes at the stadium, but in 2024, the average time at the park increased to 178 minutes – potentially boosting ancillary spending and in-stadium advertising exposure. The increased dwell time of visitors is particularly noteworthy when considering that MLB’s rule changes have significantly shortened average game time.
The more engaged fandom engendered by team success not only impacts stadium visitor behavior, but also has the potential to drive revenue. The Orioles added 20 new corporate sponsors before the 2024 season, likely due to the attention garnered by the well-performing club.
The NFL’s Detroit Lions provide another example of team success that has driven visitor engagement. As the franchise has improved its record in recent years, the trade area size of its stadium – Ford Field – has also increased, indicating elevated attendance from fans living further away.
The Lions finished the regular season with losing records from 2019 to 2021, but finished over .500 in 2022 (9-8), 2023 (12-5), and 2024 (15-2). And with the team’s increasing wins each consecutive season, the size of its stadium's trade area has also increased steadily – reaching 81.3% above 2019 levels in 2024.
This underscores just how much team success matters to fans, who may be more inclined to travel longer distances if they believe their team is likely to win. Ultimately, broader fan engagement across a wider trade area also increases a team’s growth potential beyond in-stadium attendance – driving merchandise sales, increasing viewership, and benefitting both the team and the league as a whole.
While stadium attendance and visitor behavior is often correlated to the performance of the sports teams that play in the arena, sporting venues can also drive fan engagement in ways that aren’t solely tied to team success or big-name athletes. By adapting their concessions and venue operations to visitor preferences, stadiums and arenas can better serve their audiences and strengthen their community presence.
Consumers have been feeling the pinch of rising food costs for quite some time, but at least one NBA team has responded to make concessions at the game more affordable for fans. In December 2024, the Phoenix Suns announced a $2 value menu for all home games at Footprint Center – delivering steep discounts on hot dogs, water, soda, and snacks.
Location analytics suggest that since the value menu launch, more fans who would have otherwise waited until after leaving the venue to grab a bite are now enjoying food and drinks inside the arena. Analysis of five Suns home games just before the value menu launch – between November 26th and December 15th, 2024 – reveals that between 7.0% and 9.3% of stadium visitors visited a dining establishment after leaving the arena. But following the value menu launch before the December 19th, 2024 home game, post-game dining decreased to under 6.0% through the end of the year.
Suns owner Mat Ishbia’s announcement of the new menu called out the need for affordable food options for families at Suns games. As the season progresses, the new menu may drive a larger share of family households to Suns games, which could provide opportunities for advertisers and other stadium partners.
Consumers in Washington – and especially Seattle – are known for their affinity for plant-based diets and environmentally-friendly lifestyles. And that goes for local football fans as well: Audience segmentation provided by the AGS: Behavior & Attitudes dataset combined with trade area data reveals that during September to December 2024, households within Lumen Field’s potential visitor base were 36% more likely to be “Environmentally Conscious Buyers” and “Environmental Contributors” and 39% more likely to be “Vegans” compared to the nationwide average. By contrast, across all NFL stadiums, potential visiting households were 2%, 1%, and 3% less likely, respectively, to belong to these segments.
And Lumen Field has been actively catering to these consumer preferences. The stadium, which has been experimenting with plant-based culinary options for quite some time, was recently recognized as one of the most vegan-friendly stadiums in the NFL. And in December 2024, Lumen became the second stadium in the league to achieve TRUE precertification for its efforts to become a zero-waste venue.
By remaining aligned with its visitor base – including both football fans and people that visit the stadium for other events – Lumen Field encourages visitors to feel at home at their local stadium. And fans may be more connected to their team knowing the club shares their values and respects their lifestyle.
Stadiums and arenas can leverage a variety of strategies to engage visitors in attendance as well as wider audiences. Signing a star athlete, putting together a winning club, or adapting to local preferences are just some of the ways that sports franchises and athletic venues can find success.
Starbucks. Amazon. Barclays. AT&T. UPS. These are just some of the major corporations that have made waves in recent months with return-to-office (RTO) mandates requiring employees to show up in person more often – some of them five days a week.
But how are crackdowns like these taking shape on the ground? Is the office recovery still underway, or has it run its course? And how are evolving in-office work patterns impacting commuting hubs and dining trends? This white paper dives into the data to assess the state of office recovery in 2024 – and to explore what lies ahead for the sector in 2025.
In 2024, office foot traffic continued its slow upward climb, with visits to the Placer.ai Office Index down just 34.3% compared to 2019. (In other words, visits to the Placer.ai Office Index were 65.7% of their pre-COVID levels). And zooming in on year-over-year (YoY) trends reveals that office visits grew by 10.0% in 2024 compared to 2023 – showing that employee (and manager) pushback notwithstanding, the RTO is still very much taking place.
Indeed, diving into quarterly office visit fluctuations since Q4 2019 shows that office visits have been on a slow, steady upward trajectory since Q2 2020, following – at least since 2022 – a fairly consistent seasonal pattern. In Q1, Q2, and Q3 of each year, office visit levels increased steadily before dipping in holiday-heavy Q4 – only to recover to an even higher start-of-year baseline in the following Q1.
Between Q1 and Q3 2022, for example, the post pandemic office visit gap (compared to a Q4 2019 baseline) narrowed from 63.1% to 47.5%. It then widened temporarily in Q4 before reaching a new low – 41.4% – in Q1 2023. The same pattern repeated itself in both 2023 and 2024. So even though Q4 2024 saw a predictable visit decline, the first quarter of Q1 2025 may well set a new RTO record – especially given the slew of strict RTO mandates set to take effect in Q1 at companies like AT&T and Amazon.
Despite the ongoing recovery, the TGIF work week – which sees remote-capable employees concentrating office visits midweek and working remotely on Fridays – remains more firmly entrenched than ever.
In 2024, just 12.3% of office visits took place on Fridays – less than in 2022 (13.3%) and on par with 2023 (12.4%). Though Fridays were always popular vacation days – after all, why not take a long weekend if you can – this shift represents a significant departure from the pre-COVID norm, which saw Fridays accounting for 17.3% of weekday office visits.
Unsurprisingly, Tuesdays and Wednesdays remained the busiest in-office days of the week, followed by Thursdays. And Mondays saw a slight resurgence in visit share – up to 17.9% from 16.9% in 2023 – suggesting that as the RTO progresses, Manic Mondays are once again on the agenda.
Indeed, a closer look at year-over-five-year (Yo5Y) visit trends throughout the work week shows that on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 2024 office foot traffic was down just 24.3% and 26.9%, respectively, compared to 2019 levels. The Thursday visit gap registered at 30.3%, while the Monday gap came in at 40.5%.
But on Fridays, offices were less than half as busy as they were in 2019 – with foot traffic down a substantial 53.2% compared to 2019.
Before COVID, long commutes on crowded subways, trains, and buses were a mainstay of the nine-to-five grind. But the rise of remote and hybrid work put a dent in rush hour traffic – leading to a substantial slowdown in the utilization of public transportation. As the office recovery continues to pick up steam, examining foot traffic patterns at major ground transportation commuting hubs, such as Penn Station in New York or Union Station in Washington, D.C., offers additional insight into the state of RTO.
Rush hour, for one thing – especially in the mornings – isn’t quite what it used to be. In 2024, overall visits to ground transportation hubs were down 25.0% compared to 2019. But during morning rush hour – weekdays between 6:00 AM and 9:00 AM – visits were down between 44.6% and 53.0%, with Fridays (53.0%) and Mondays (49.7%) seeing the steepest drops. Even as people return to the office, it seems, many may be coming in later – leaning into their biological clocks and getting more sleep. And with today’s office-goers less likely to be suburban commuters than in the past (see below), hubs like Penn Station aren’t as bustling first thing in the morning as they were pre-pandemic.
Evening rush hour, meanwhile, has been quicker to bounce back, with 2024 visit gaps ranging from 36.4% on Fridays to 30.0% on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Office-goers likely form a smaller part of the late afternoon and evening rush hour crowd, which may include more travelers heading to a variety of places. And commuters going to work later in the day – including “coffee badgers” – may still be apt to head home between four and seven.
The drop in early-morning public transportation traffic may also be due to a shift in the geographical distribution of would-be commuters. Data from Placer.ai’s RTO dashboard shows that visits originating from areas closer to office locations have recovered faster than visits from farther away – indicating that people living closer to work are more likely to be back at their desks.
And analyzing the captured markets of major ground transportation hubs shows that the share of households from “Principal Urban Centers” (the most densely populated neighborhoods of the largest cities) rose substantially over the past five years. At the same time, the share of households from the “Suburban Periphery” dropped from 39.1% in 2019 to 32.7% in 2024. (A location’s captured market refers to the census block groups (CBGs) from which it draws its visitors, weighted to reflect the share of visits from each one – and thus reflects the profile of the location’s visitor base.)
This shift in the profile of public transportation consumers may explain the relatively slow recovery of morning transportation visits: City dwellers , who seem to be coming into the office more frequently than suburbanites, may not need to get as early a start to make it in on time.
While the RTO debate is often framed around employer and worker interests, what happens in the office doesn’t stay in the office. Office attendance levels leave their mark on everything from local real estate markets to nationwide relocation patterns. And industries from apparel to dining have undergone significant shifts in the face of evolving work routines.
Within the dining space, for example, fast-casual chains have always been workplace favorites. Offering quick, healthy, and inexpensive lunch options, these restaurants appeal to busy office workers seeking to fuel up during a long day at their desks.
Traditionally, the category has drawn a significant share of its traffic from workplaces. And after dropping during COVID, the share of visits to leading fast-casual brands coming from workplaces is once again on the rise.
In 2019, for example, 17.3% of visits to Chipotle came directly from workplaces, a share that fell to just 11.6% in 2022. But each year since, the share has increased – reaching 16.0% in 2024. Similar patterns have emerged at other segment leaders, including Jersey Mike’s Subs, Panda Express, and Five Guys. So as people increasingly go back to the office, they are also returning to their favorite lunch spots.
For many Americans, coffee is an integral part of the working day. So it may come as no surprise that shifting work routines are also reflected in visit patterns at leading coffee chains.
In 2019, 27.5% of visits to Dunkin’ and 20.1% of visits to Starbucks were immediately followed by a workplace visit, as many employees grabbed a cup of Joe on the way to work or popped out of the office for a midday coffee break. In the wake of COVID, this share dropped for both coffee leaders. But since 2022, it has been steadily rebounding – another sign of how the RTO is shaping consumer behavior beyond the office.
Five years after the pandemic upended work routines and supercharged the soft pants revolution, the office recovery story is still being written. Workplace attendance is still on the rise, and restaurants and coffee chains are in the process of reclaiming their roles as office mainstays. Still, office visit data and foot traffic patterns at commuting hubs show that the TGIF work week is holding firm – and that people aren’t coming in as early or from as far away as they used to. As new office mandates take effect in 2025, the office recovery and its ripple effects will remain a story to watch.
