Posted on May 30, 2013

How Fast-Food Eaters Split Along Ethnic Lines

Business Week, May 29, 2013

Nothing tops ethnicity as a predictor of a diner’s taste in fast food.

Asian Americans are nearly four times more likely to visit a Jamba Juice (JMBA) than the average consumer, but less likely to visit McDonald’s (MCD), Burger King (BKW), Wendy’s (WEN), and Taco Bell (YUM), according to a report released today by Placed, a location analytics company. “Ethnicity is quantifiably in the driver’s seat when determining fast-food consumption,” says Placed Chief Executive David Shim. “No single demographic trait — age, gender, income — provides the signal that ethnicity does in terms of restaurant preference.”

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Here are some of the findings from the Placed report, which is based on data from 70,000 U.S. consumers in April:

These chains get more traffic from Caucasian customers:

• Taco Johns
• Culver’s
• Tim Horton’s
• Steak ‘n Shake
• Caribou Coffee

“The listed quick-serve restaurant locations skew toward the Midwest and East Coast,” says Shim.

These chains get more traffic from Hispanic customers:

• Pollo Tropical
• El Pollo Loco
• In-N-Out Burger
• Wienerschnitzel
• Del Taco

Shim says the data for Hispanic consumers “quantifies a preference to fast-food categories that have roots in their ethnic background.”

These chains get more traffic from African American customers

• Church’s
• Checkers
• Popeye’s Chicken & Biscuits
• Krystal
• Rally’s

For African American diners, the data show there are “two defined categories — chicken and burgers — in terms of fast food preference,” says Shim.

These chains get more traffic from Asian customers

• Jamba Juice
• In-N-Out Burger
• Jack In The Box
• Starbucks
• Panda Express

“This is one of the most diverse mixes of quick-serve restaurant categories based on ethnicity,” Shim says.