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Simple solutions for your foodservice challenges.

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AHOY THERE!
SAVINGS OFF THE PORT SIDE!

From now until the end of June or until inventory runs out, we will be offering an additional 15% off of the Port Side Chair. Supply is limited so contact us today to make sure this deal doesn’t go overboard without you!

Claim your share of the savings!

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We’re excited to provide our Q1 2019 Commercial Foodservice Business Barometer, and with a simple goal. To provide timely and insightful data we know you need.

You can only get it from our Business Barometer.

And you can only get it from MAFSI.

The MAFSI Business Barometer continued in its now familiar “Goldilocks” mode of “not too hot, not too cold” with a modest uptick to +2.5% growth in Q1 2019.

Most of the uptick was concentrated in the category of Equipment which advanced from +2.3% in Q4 2018 to 2.7% in Q1 2019. This was followed by +2.3% in Tabletop, +1.7% in Supplies and +1.4% in Furniture. 

By region, the brunt of the uptick was attributable to a significant advance in the Northeast which improved from +1.6% in Q4 2018 to +3.3% in Q1 2019. Other regions reported +3.2% in the South, +3.0% in Canada, +2.1% in the West, and +1.5% in the Midwest where wintery weather was a major factor. For Q2 2019 MAFSI Reps are forecasting another modest improvement to +2.8%. This would represent the 41st consecutive quarter of foodservice growth which parallels the overall post-recession expansion of the U.S. economy.

The MAFSI Business Barometer now in its 17^th year has met recent and occasional criticism as being too conservative in its measurements and projections. In reality, the MAFSI Business Barometer has been “right on the money” in terms of its accuracy. Throughout its history, it has been precise in achieving its forecasts, consistent in maintaining measurement criteria and stable in avoiding “knee jerk” reactions to short term disruptions.

Some current concerns on our watch list include the continuing impact of both imposed and threatened tariffs, the “inversion curve” of interest rates which is a recession worry, and a decline in the NRA’s Restaurant Performance Index. All in all, continued slow, steady, moderate growth in a stable business economy should provide plenty of opportunities.

See the full Q1 2019 Commercial Foodservice Business Barometer here.  

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