5 chains facing a tough year in 2017

The New year does not always mean a new revival to business for a company. There are many chains that are facing financial trouble in 2017. They could not leave the trouble behind them. Applebees and Ruby Tuesday’s are just a few of the chained facing trouble this year. Only time will tell.

Key Takeaways:

• Anyone who pays attention to this space knows that 2016 was not much fun for many restaurant operators. Traffic was bad despite low gas prices, low unemployment and high consumer confidence.
• But some chains had it worse than others. With grocery prices falling, many concepts will find it difficult to generate more traffic in 2017, even though comparisons will supposedly get easier. As such, many chains face major questions heading into 2017. Here are five worth noting.
• Applebee’s turned back to discounts to get that traffic back. But that could have a ripple effect throughout the casual-dining segment, because if Applebee’s starts discounting, others might have to follow suit.

“With grocery prices falling, many concepts will find it difficult to generate more traffic in 2017, even though comparisons will supposedly get easier.”

http://www.nrn.com/sales-trends/5-chains-facing-tough-year-2017