|
For more info, click here Sales at casual dining restaurants across the U.S. fell by 5.4% last month, according to the Knapp-Track Index of monthly restaurant sales. February’s drop in sales follows a 0.6% decline in January and 1.6% decline in December 2012 – marking the first time in three years of consecutive declines in the first three months of the year. Experts feel that the larger decline in sales is a direct result of the shrinking paychecks of U.S. taxpayers. From additional taxes to higher prices and uncertainty about healthcare costs, consumers are tightening their purse strings, especially when it comes to dining and retail purchases. A recent survey by RBC Capital Markets showed that higher payroll taxes have been the biggest impediment to sales this year, “hurting business for about 63% of companies”. This is up from 36% of companies who had seen a cut in business in January. The same survey also reported that 54% of Americans said they had already cut back on dining out or intended to do so. Cutting back on dining out was the number one reduced expense named, followed by clothing and vacation. “February was pretty ugly” for many chains — and probably will be the worst month of the year — after January delivered an “initial blow” while Americans grappled with increased payroll taxes and health-care premiums, rising gasoline prices and budget debates in Washington,” said Malcolm Knapp, a New York-based consultant who created the index and has monitored the industry since 1970. Experts also estimate that the casual-dining sales are feeling the slowdown in spending the most because they are caught in the middle between food-on-the-go or high-end menus for people trying to treat themselves.
Related Articles -
food, restaurant, franchise, franchises, business, businesses, business opportunity,
| 
