Profit Shakedown: The Heat is On

What would you say if I told you that Canada’s food service sector brought in on average $85 billion dollars? Would it catch you by surprise? It should, because it actually brings in $124 billion as a whole. This includes every element of food service, from your local Tim Horton’s to the Michelin starred restaurants. Canada food service is actually projected to grow exponentially over the next eight years, which means that there will be more slices of that $124 billion pie to be claimed with an annual growth rate of just over 5%. This means that Canadians are actively participating in food service using any means they have access to and that also means that there are a lot of businesses seeing great success. On the other end of that success, however, is the percentage of restaurants that don’t pull a profit, which is an astounding 40%. Whether you fall into the burgeoning 60% or the 40% that is on the way up, what matters is that there is always hope to be found in the food industry.

In 2020, a pandemic caused a whole cataclysmic shift in every system on the planet, and food was no different. A lot of great restaurants had to close because people couldn’t come to eat. If the people don’t come, there’s nothing to serve and all profits go down the drain. We are just now, in 2025, getting back to some pre-Covid levels, and even then it isn’t a universal growth. A huge number of restaurants had to turn to different ways to get food into their consumers hands. Some turned to in-house delivery, others turned to a third party (Uber Eats, Skip the Dishes, DoorDash, etc.). New food trends are getting people in the doors, which is a great way to get people’s attention. A decade ago, it was a quality charcuterie board with various meats and cheeses. It has since divulged into the (arguably worse for a number of reasons) butter board. The name of the game has been diversity and that is what has kept restaurants in business and thriving. This isn’t to say that every divergence has been successful. In fact, there are so many trends that have faded quietly into the background and you’d be hard-pressed to find them in the average restaurant (rainbow bagels ring a bell?). The point is, turning chaos into turning a profit is difficult but not out an out impossible. In some ways, technology has a gargantuan part to play in business ventures.

When it comes to the future of the industry, a lot of places have begun replacing humans with some kind of tablet. That’s not to say that I want that to be true, mainly because a lot of young people (myself included) have found success in entering the food service industry as their first job, or even their entire career. I started out in food with McDonald’s, then moved on to a Boston Pizza. I even did work for a summer at a concession stand at the city pool. That was over a decade ago for a couple of those, and the technology has only improved since then. What I’m saying is that with technology and its vast improvements, it may be inevitable to see it more and more on a regular basis. It isn’t a death sentence if you don’t introduce technology into your business, and I’m certainly not suggesting do something you are uncomfortable with. Essentially, Canadians are finding it hard to go out to eat in today’s financial climate, with 75% of them wary about spending money on going out to eat. This means that we are seeing an influx of ordering in and food delivery services on the rise. (If you want an interesting read, look into the service Grab in Asia. Started as a small company and has grown to the number car/delivery service on the continent). So, why does this all matter? Basically, it comes down to knowing how people operate and how you can capitalize on that knowledge. Technology is not bad and success is not impossible, but we are no longer in the food service in the aughts or even the late 2010s. 2020 changed the game, and that change is irreversible. The way forward is productivity, so figure out how to be part of the 60%.

Marketing is one those ways forward, and we can help! We put in the man power on the backend so you can tackle the things that really need your attention. We also do our own research and make our designs in house catered to each individual client, so you will receive a service that is specific to you. We can help your business succeed!

All statistics taken from either https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250122657236/en/Canada-Foodservice-Forecast-Report-2025-2033-%24135-Billion-Market-Adapting-to-Consumer-Demands-for-Faster-Healthier-Eating-Solutions-Amid-Widespread-Use-of-Apps-Like-Uber-DoorDash-and-SkipTheDishes---ResearchAndMarkets.com or from the newest edition of Menu Magazine, https://menumag.ca/read-the-latest-issue/ .