QSR pack in the soup as weak consumer sentiment bites

livemint.com:

Mint. The lackluster consumer sentiment was reflected in QSR companies’ December quarter (Q3FY24) results as well with most players reporting a sequential drop in sales growth, and some also posting negative year-on-year same-store sales growth, a key metric for retailers. This was despite Q3 being a festival-heavy quarter.

Moreover, the growth of online food delivery companies such as Zomato Ltd and Swiggy has meant that the reach of smaller restaurants has expanded. This means consumers have more food options thus denting QSR delivery sales. For perspective, in Q3, the average monthly active food delivery restaurant partners stood at 254,000 for Zomato.

This compares to Devyani’s store count of 1,452, Sapphire Food India’s 850, Westlife’s 380 and Restaurant Brand Asia’s 441. While India’s macroeconomic headlines are pulsating with gung-ho optimism, many analysts have flagged signs of stress in some pockets of the consumption landscape. In a recent report, Fisdom Research noted that consumer sentiment, as measured by CMIE’s Index of Consumer Sentiments (ICS), plummeted to a four-month low in February 2024.

“The slump in consumer sentiments can be attributed to multiple factors, including lingering uncertainties surrounding economic stability and income prospects. Additionally, the Index of Consumer Expectations witnessed a second consecutive decline, indicating dwindling optimism about future financial and business conditions, especially noticeable in urban households," the Fisdom report said. However, it is not all gloom and doom.