Eating at a fast-food outlet may be a better bargain than ordering in

livemint.com:

₹58,000-crore quick service restaurant industry, the challenge form restaurant aggregators isn’t new. But the post-pandemic revenge dining boom has petered out, while Covid-driven surge in home deliveries continues. Consumers cutting back on spending to counter inflation has made it worse.

In the first quarter of FY25, aggregate sales of listed quick service restaurant chains rose 8% year-on-year, but lagged the growth in the number of outlets, according to the report. While QSR chains rapidly expanded their store count after a strong recovery post the pandemic, the subsequent demand slowdown resulted in a 400-600 basis-point erosion in post-rent Ebitda margin. (Ebitda is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization; 100 basis points make up one percentage point).

“The last two quarters saw several cricketing events (IPL and T20 World Cup) and extreme summers and rains—as a result, dine-in has been severely impacted," said Sagar Daryani, chief executive officer and co-founder, Wow! Momo Foods. “Also, we have not seen a major Bollywood blockbuster movie come in—and that's why there are no big footfalls that typically help draw consumers to malls and food courts. Bollywood could hold the key." Sluggish footfalls prompted Wow Momo to offer breakfast in stores as well as run offers.

It is also revamping more outlets--clubbing its portfolio of restaurants under one roof to create an experiential environment for diners. “The entire industry is taking several steps to get people back," said Daryani. Domino’s pizza chain operator in India, Jubilant Foodworks, launched the ₹99 lunch feast for in-store consumers last quarter to lure diners back.