Foot traffic and in-store visits to food and beverage establishments in the U.S. has increased 48 percent since the start of 2021, according to new research from marketing tech company Zenreach emailed to The Spoon.
The uptick in restaurant foot traffic seems the natural result of more Americans getting vaccinated and cities and states loosening restrictions around when, where, and with how many customers dining rooms can reopen. (It should also put to final rest earlier speculation that the pandemic killed the concept of the eat-in restaurant.)
Certain cities have seen enormous increases. San Diego, California has seen a 198 percent increase since January 2021, followed by Los Angeles (141 percent), San Jose (141 percent), and Denver, Colorado (129 percent). California had the most increases overall, with The Golden State cities taking five of the top seven spots on Zenreach’s list of increases. At the same time, California is fully reopening its economy today, which could bump its overall number of foot traffic increases even higher in the future.
Zenreach expects foot traffic to continue increasing for the entire country. “It would not surprise me if nationwide foot traffic reaches a more than 55% lift (since January 1st, 2021) within the next three months.” Megan Wintersteen, VP of Marketing for Zenreach, said in a statement.
Of course, the foot traffic increases come at a time when the restaurant industry is dealing with a major labor shortage that’s making it difficult for businesses to offer the level of customer service they normally would. The restaurant industry is still 1.5 million jobs below pre-pandemic levels, according to the National Restaurant Association. An increase in foot traffic could further increase difficulties in delivering the kind of service customers previously expected when dining out. Unemployment benefits are frequently blamed for the shortage, and many states are now asking for proof of a job search for those seeking unemployment. Larger chains are also responding to demands for safer jobs and higher wages for restaurant workers.
