Rise & shine

Upping the breakfast offer in outlets is the way forward to persuade the early birds to take full advantage of the food and ambience. Sheila Eggleston reports.

Pubs ignore breakfast at their peril, says analyst Mintel – a warning the big pub chains have taken on board, keen to tap even more into an area that has been neglected by other operators.

Mintel's research shows eating breakfast in or out of home is a ritual for six in 10 consumers. Toast and cereal top the list of choices, while a third of consumers opt for hot cereals such as porridge – for example McDonald's Oatso Simple.

JD Wetherspoon has around 780 pubs across the UK, and since April 95% of them have been open for breakfast from 7am. Spokesman Eddie Gershon says the rest will follow as soon as a few glitches have been ironed out.

The pub chain had served breakfast from 9am for almost six years, and Gershon says it wasn't a massive shift to open at seven. "We thought the breakfast market was one that would continue to grow. We didn't expect an overnight response but opening at seven in the morning over the last three months has been very successful."

Wetherspoon believes it's in a very strong position as it says outside places such as McDonald's and Starbucks, it is the only place you can get breakfast at seven.

It serves 13 million breakfasts a year and around 25 million cups of coffee. Even though the coffee is served throughout the day, a high percentage is at breakfast time, says Gershon.

The breakfast menu is varied from croissants to porridge and fruit salad, and between 7am and 9am the coffee costs 49p. "I think we've always been innovative and responsive to a market that changes massively. Our food is big and we do hot drinks very well. Our coffee is Lavazza Rainforest Alliance certified and compared to other chains is incredibly good value."

Scottish & Newcastle's (S&N) food development manager Ben Bartlett says the breakfast trade has been identifi ed as a key growth area by a number of outlets that compete for custom with pubs. "It therefore makes a lot of sense for pubs to open for breakfast so customers won't look elsewhere for their morning coffee, croissant or bacon roll. Early opening will also establish strong customer loyalty so the breakfast crowd will keep coming back for the daytime and evening trade periods."

Bartlett has created four breakfast menu templates that are available on www.snpcfood.co.uk and it offers a list of suppliers with suitable products and equipment.

Supported by distributors such as 3663, Booker and Brakes, the kind of breakfast it is promoting ranges from full English to porridge with fruit, and pastries such as croissants and pain au chocolat.

But it's not just the food. According to S&N, free wi-fi, TV and newspapers, toys to amuse the kids, quiet areas and a breakfast club with a single stamp loyalty scheme are some of the other attractions to keep consumers coming back.

Brands are big when it comes to boosting sales and S&N has linked with leading ones such as Weetabix and Del Monte for cereals – including Weetabix' latest chocolate variant – and fresh fruit respectively.

Heinz Foodservice says the out of home breakfast market is promising, with more outlets offering all day options. Brand manager Emily Frank says: "With the cost of breakfast food stabilising in 2009 following the hikes of the year before, there is now a bit more room to breathe in terms of managing costs and more opportunities for caterers to cash in. It might take a significant initial investment to introduce – particularly if there isn't an all day proposition already – but a breakfast menu can present good long term revenue. By using ingredients that complement the rest of the menu, costs are kept low while profitability goes up."

Frank says the key to maximising profit is keeping menus simple and well priced. "By offering favourites such as a bacon sandwich, with a choice of added extras, the basic price can be kept low, while charges for the extras boost the final sale."