News

Study: Restaurants can find new customers via workplace catering

March 7, 2018

After a tumultuous year, employers are refocusing efforts around creating a safe and happy work environment for their teams. One way to do that is by providing shared food experiences, according to a recent survey from ZeroCater. It polled 100 employees and office managers to better understand the role food played in a company's culture and what matters when it comes to office meals and snacks.

Highlights are below

• When asked how happy they were at work, 75 percent of employees said they were at an 8 or higher, with 10 being the highest level of happiness. Nearly the same percentage (74 percent) of employees polled have access to free meals and snacks in the office.
• With collaboration being a key conduit of productivity, 90 percent of employers said meals help their employees build stronger relationships with colleagues.
• Unemployment rates are at their lowest, leading to the recruitment and retention of top talent being more competitive than ever. For employers, shared meals are an integral part of the onboarding process, with 79 percent viewing meals as a way for new employees to meet their coworkers; and 67 percent said meals are a part of their retention strategy, giving employees a reason to stay at their company.
• Efficiency is key now more than ever with 88 percent of employers saying meals save their employees time by not leaving to find lunch.

Employees see the value in access to food at work
When looking at their overall employee benefits and office perks, more than one-third of employees (38 percent) ranked office food as one of their top three office perks, alongside vacation time and professional development.

• Employees considered it important for their employers to provide food in the office, with 88 percent considering snacks important and 78 percent saying the same of office meals.
• Time is precious, with 70 percent of employees saying office meals save them time venturing out to find lunch.
• With finances on their mind, 76 percent of employees consider office catering to be a money-saver.

What employees want
For employers who are ready to offer new food programs for their office, or even for those looking to reinvigorate their current office perks, the aspects of food that matter to employees might surprise you:

• Employees are more health conscious than ever
  - According to 65 percent of employees, having access to healthy snacks in the office was very or extremely important, with 53percent saying office snacks help them stay healthy.
  - When it comes to dietary restrictions and preferences, 55 percent of employees said it was very or extremely important to have office meals that cater to their preferences.
  - 41percent of employees wanted to know where the ingredients in their office meals come from.
• Finances are on their minds
  - 26 percent said they saved an average of $50 or more per week with office meals
  - 35 percent said they saved more than $20 per week on office snacks.
• Variety and rotation matter
  -The quality of the meal and variety of cuisine type are the two most important attributes of office meals for employees.
  - When evaluating office snacks, employees ranked variety (5 6percent), full shelves (47p ercent) and healthy snacks (65 percent) as most important.

Restaurants can find a new audience with office food programs
Achieving success in the restaurant industry is harder now than ever. Among the disruption caused by delivery and meal kits, rising operations costs, and the opening of more restaurants than ever before, restaurant owners must find additional revenue streams and actively market their restaurants — and office-meal business provides both, according to the release.

• 63 percent of employees said they have visited new restaurants they discovered through their office's meals.
• 68 percent of employees said they have purchased snacks and beverages they discovered through their office's snack programs. 
• Employees wanted the latest and greatest in office snacks, with 32percent wanting the latest snack trends and 30percent wanting to try the newest snacks on the market.
• 73 percent of companies spent $10–$15 per person, per meal. With an average company size of 248 employees, companies are spending $2,480–$3,720 per meal.