How does the Weather Affect Restaurant Sales?

Would you be surprised to learn that a 75% of restaurants report a sales drop of at least 10% due to undesirable changes in the weather? In fact, over 40% of restaurants say the sales drop is greater than 20%. If you are a restaurant owner or operator, or somehow involved in the restaurant industry this may not surprise you too much since many accept it as a way of doing business.

However, there has been a dearth of research on this topic of slow sales conditions for restaurants. Few has tried to quantify the financial impact that the weather (among other factors) has had on a restaurant's bottom line.

In our recent research survey of over 244 restaurants across the country, we have concluded that the impact for the average restaurant is a $31,200 annual loss in potential revenue (and over $200,000 annually for restaurants making at least a few million dollars in revenue).

You can read more about our slow sales response (SSR) restaurant research here: SSR Insights - October, 2009 or learn about Bluesky Local's solution to this problem by clicking the red button below.