Dimmi’s annual Dining Index has been released, shedding light on the current trends influencing the strength of Australia’s hospitality sector.
The fourth annual Australian Dining Index found that the restaurant industry has dropped by 2.4 percent when compared to 2013/14. The ACT was hit the hardest, dropping 9.2 percent, followed by Queensland which fell 6.8 percent and Victoria, 4.4 percent. The market improved slightly – by just 0.2 percent – in NSW, but the clear leader of the pack is South Australia where the market jumped by 7.6 percent over the past 12 months.
Spend per head
Despite the industry decreasing overall, the national average spend increased, albeit by only 37 cents. The premium end of the market showed the most significant growth, up by 17 percent to more than $85 a head. West Australian diners spend the least per head ($48.43), followed by Victoria ($53.85), Queensland ($53.88), NSW ($57.43) and South Australia ($58.88). Diners in the ACT spend the most, with an average of $60.77 per head.
Bookings
The Index also revealed that diners are more impulsive about eating out, with lead times decreasing by 11 percent year on year, and 32 percent of all bookings now made within 24 hours of the dining time. In addition, 2015’s Index is the first to show that mobiles have overtaken desktops as the preferred booking method for restaurants, with 53 percent of online bookings for restaurants now being made from a mobile device.
“The release of the Dimmi Dining Index is always such an exciting event for us and our fourth edition is an absolute cracker. The most prolific industry trend we’ve seen is the shift from desktop to mobile bookings. We saw it happen with airlines and hotels, and now we’re seeing it with restaurants too.” said Stevan Premutico, founder and CEO of Dimmi.
Other key trends revealed in the Index are:
- Double sittings: Having two sittings is now a common practice for restaurants. Bookings have decreased between 7 – 8pm by nine percent when compared to 2013/14, while the time slots either side have both increased
- Corporates are back: There has been a 41 percent increase in online bookings, from the top 10 corporates, over the past 12 months
- Aussies are eating out less frequently but spending more: Consumers are eating out slightly less frequently than last year but are spending a little more, with an increase of $0.37 on 2013/14
- Spend concern: The average spend in restaurants has increased by only $1.00 in three years. Automation is critical to reduce costs and boost profit margins at a time of increasing rent and labour costs, Dimmi says.
- Men vs women: The gender gap is closing but males still spend more than females when eating out – $61 and $53 respectively. Males also make more spur of the moment reservations, with 36 percent of bookings made by men in the 24 hours prior to dining. This compares to 28 percent for women in the same period
To see a video summary of last year's Dining Index, click here.
The Dimmi Dining Index is gathered from the bookings through the last financial year compared to previous years. The figures come from seating 13 million diners, over 2,500 partner restaurants, 600,000 qualified dining reviews and a Dimmi Global Distribution Network, which includes Google, Qantas, Tripadvisor and Zomato (previously Urbanspoon).
