It is gratifying to note that this year the restaurant business in Ukraine is developing in accordance with marketers' forecasts, without any particular surprises.

It is gratifying to note that this year the restaurant business in Ukraine is developing in line with marketers' forecasts, without any particular surprises.

In Kyiv, mid-price establishments (average bill 50-70 UAH per person) are experiencing an upswing, while the opening of new luxury establishments has slowed significantly. Macroeconomic factors have played a role: large businesses with millions in revenue are not growing as actively as small and medium-sized ones, meaning the elite audience is not expanding. Therefore, the circle of clients who can afford to visit luxury establishments has already been established, and it is practically not expanding. Establishments in the luxury sector can only share the same clientele, "poach" them from each other, but do not form new ones. Therefore, the risk of creating an establishment with an average bill of 150-200 UAH is much higher than that of a mid-priced establishment, especially considering the significant financial investments (from $ 1 million and up) in the elite sector.

Macroeconomic factors significantly influence the development of the restaurant business in other cities of Ukraine. It is easy to trace the relationship between the development of establishments of the elite or mid-range segment and the development of large or medium/small businesses. Very often, a certain "polarity" of development is observed in cities: if the elite sector is relevant, then inexpensive establishments are also relevant. The mid-range segment in this case simply "drops out". The situation is developing in such a way that the development of mid-priced restaurants (cafes, bars, etc.) is an indicator of both the economic development of the city and the civilization of society. It sounds rather grandiose, but it's true nonetheless.

But let's return to Kyiv. The lower price segment of the Kyiv restaurant business is growing slower than the mid-price segment. There are several reasons for this: an establishment with a low average bill benefits from turnover (the turnover ratio per seat should be at least 1.2). To achieve this, it is necessary to find a front-facing location with a passenger flow of at least 1,500-2,000 people per hour, and for Kyiv, this is quite a difficult task. As a rule, people don't come to low-price establishments specifically; the spontaneous decision to visit them is more than 70%. Therefore, the currently popular formats of low-price establishments (fast food restaurants, cafes, bars) can only be successful if the premises are chosen correctly and the rental rate allows for profitability. In this regard, the currently extremely popular Quick & Casual format is only 20-25% developed to its potential, since it is very difficult today to find premises that meet all the requirements and can accommodate a large number of seats.

As for the fast food and cafe market in the lower price segment, a lot of pizzerias have appeared over the past year (more than in the last 3 years combined). It seems that no matter what part of the city you open a pizzeria, it will be in demand.

Countryside establishments are actively developing, especially those located on key highways - Odessa, Zhitomir, Obukhovskaya. It has been noted that during the weekends in the summer, restaurants located within the city are significantly empty, while countryside ones are overcrowded. This trend is becoming more pronounced every year. The only city restaurants that win are those located in recreational areas (parks, embankments). This phenomenon is most likely connected with the emerging tradition of a full-fledged family vacation. The idea of ​​"outdoor recreation" is acquiring an increasingly civilized form. Countryside establishments, as a rule, are created according to the same model: a restaurant (in one room or separate houses), a hotel with 15-25 rooms (in one building or cottage format), a barbecue (shish kebab is an indispensable attribute of an "outdoor" vacation), a playground, and sometimes a small zoo or swimming pool. Despite the active development of country-style establishments, most often they are not branded, relying on a passing audience, and much less on the Kyiv residents themselves, who specifically travel to them. In this case, we are faced with a situation where supply creates demand - any successful countryside establishment finds its customers. Outside the city, it is easier to buy land, build your own restaurant premises and become its sole owner. This is an undeniable advantage, since the vast majority of Kyiv restaurants rent premises and experience serious crises when the property owner changes, the lease is cancelled, or the rent increases.

As previously expected, the development of tea and coffee shops and pastry shops has intensified over the past year. More than 10 of them have opened in Kyiv this year. Old cafes are doing well, new ones are opening, such as "Nouvelle" in the Passage, "Kofium" on Kostelnaya. Establishments with a price level of 15-25 UAH, offering coffee, tea, baked goods, pastries, and chocolate, are becoming popular. However, the boom, as expected, did not happen. Although, in principle, the coffee shop and pastry shop segment in Kyiv is close to saturation. A strategically sound move is to create not a single coffee shop or pastry shop, but a chain of such establishments. This is due primarily to technological reasons: it is much more profitable to establish your own workshop to serve several establishments, and marketing reasons: consumers quickly become accustomed to a particular brand and products.

Trends in the restaurant business, of course, also include trends in the development of certain cuisines. Much to our surprise, preferences by cuisine type vary widely, especially across Ukraine's regions. A strong preference is for a specific product, rather than a specific type of cuisine per se, for example, a preference for meat, often a specific type (pork, chicken), served in various cuisines, or for fish and seafood. In Kyiv, certain cuisines generally have established groups of admirers, while other consumers prefer their favorite product in its favorite preparation, and the type of cuisine represented by a particular dish is completely irrelevant. Therefore, the type of cuisine most commonly found in various establishments across Ukraine can be described as mixed (in some cities, it's called the odd word "international"), with an emphasis on a specific group of dishes or cooking method. Accordingly, the concept of restaurant cuisine is changing. Dishes are becoming more naturalized, requiring less additional processing, and the goal of presentation is to highlight the main ingredient, not "camouflage" it. Customers should be able to clearly see what they're eating. More and more restaurants are emphasizing the natural use of ingredients rather than the complexity of recipes when creating their menus. Hence the conclusion: long live the signature cuisine, which allows you to creatively rework all the existing cuisines of the world and create your own product, which will attract consumers.

A similar situation is observed with the preference for bar products, each of which can be the basis for creating an entire format: coffee shops, beer bars, drinking establishments, establishments with an emphasis on cocktails or wine.

In general, it can be noted that the purposes of visiting restaurants are beginning to change, which are increasingly reduced to food and the communication that accompanies it.

And yet there are still unoccupied niches in this business. For example, specialized children's cafes - the children's theme is present in many establishments, but it practically does not receive special attention. Promising directions of the "movement" - local establishments serving residential and suburban areas (pizzerias, cafes), so-called "one-street restaurants." Enterprises focused on specific product preferences (dish, menu item, or drink) are underrepresented. Catering and food delivery to homes or offices offer incredible scope for development. I'd also like to note the prospects of music-oriented establishments (not nightclubs, but rather art restaurants and art cafes). Establishments created according to an existing model are very successful from a business perspective; this is the principle underlying the idea of ​​franchising. In this case, the risk of concept failure is minimized. "Trump Card," the majority of fast food restaurants, follows this path. Any successful catering enterprise is, in fact, a successful technology, and, like any technology, it can be replicated in any city in the world. Active network development of famous restaurant brands is just around the corner.

Olga Nasonova

Larisa Danilenko

The article was published on the website www.restoran.ua, section "For professionals"