APT Index: August Restaurant Same-Store Sales Highest in 2014 at 3.3%

Applied Predictive Technologies (APT) today announced that the APT Index of U.S. same-store restaurant sales increased [+3.3%] in August, as check size, or sales per transaction, increased [+3.2%].

The [+3.3%] increase in the APT Index of restaurant sales for August is the highest reported this year after a disappointing first two quarters. While restaurants continued to struggle to drive more transactions, the APT Index showed that restaurant transactions increased [+0.2%] year-over-year, which could be a sign that restaurants are headed in the right direction.

The APT Restaurant Index enables restaurant executives to understand their “true comps.” Instead of simply looking at year-over-year changes, restaurant organizations can now compare each of their location’s sales to restaurant sales in the surrounding area to understand performance adjusted for local market factors outside of the control of decision-makers. The APT Restaurant Index captures sales data from tens of thousands of sales registers, making it the most definitive and accurate source for restaurant sales available. Further, the APT Restaurant Index integrates thousands of other data points, including temperature, precipitation, and demographics, to allow executives to understand how various factors impact performance.

August Restaurant Sales – by APT Index Numbers:

The big picture

• Overall nationwide sales: [+3.3%]
• Number of transactions: [+0.2%]
• Sales per transaction: [+3.2%]

The APT Index also shows where sales performance was highest in August, including areas where unemployment decreased year-over-year and where median income was less than $50K.

Impact of unemployment change on restaurant sales

• In areas where unemployment decreased year-over-year, the APT Index of sales increased [+3.6%]
• In areas where unemployment increased year-over-year, the APT Index of sales increased [+2.8%]

Impact of median income on restaurant sales

• In areas with median income less than $50K, the APT Index of sales increased [+4.3%]
• In areas with median income $50K or greater, the APT Index of sales increased [+2.8%]

Restaurant sales also varied among the Top 25 metro areas in August. The metro areas where the APT Index showed restaurants performing the best were: Boston, MA with a [+5.3%] increase in sales; Denver, CO [+4.8%]; and Houston, TX [+4.7%]. The areas where the APT Index showed restaurants performing the worst were: New York, NY [-0.5%], Philadelphia, PA [-0.1%], and Baltimore, MD [+1.3%].

[All figures are a year-over-year, same-location comparison from August 2014 to August 2013, adjusted for consistent weekdays.]

Anthony Bruce, CEO of APT, said, “The APT Index allows us to understand both how the economy and local markets, including states and very specific geographic areas, are performing. The APT Index reported that August same-store sales were the highest comps for restaurants this year at 3.3%. In fact, all states saw positive sales comps in August except for New Jersey, which was down 0.2%.”

Bruce added, “In addition to providing sales comps at a national level, the APT Index can provide restaurant executives with comps for each of their locations based on restaurants in the nearby area. This data enables them to answer very specific questions about their business, including: What should any given restaurant’s performance be, based on how nearby restaurants are doing? How can we determine if some restaurants are really over- or under-performing, or if their performance is due to what’s happening in their local area? How do we perform compared to surrounding restaurants when we run a national ad campaign? We are seeing a lot of excitement among restaurant executives in using the APT Index to answer these and other mission critical questions.”

For more information, visit: www.predictivetechnologies.com.

About APT

APT is the world’s largest purely cloud-based predictive analytics software company. APT’s Test & Learn software is revolutionizing the way Global 2000 companies harness their Big Data to accurately measure the profit impact of pricing, marketing, merchandising, menu, operations, and capital initiatives, tailoring investments in these areas to maximize ROI. APT’s client portfolio includes Walmart, Wendy’s, Starbucks, Panera, Subway, Lowe’s, SunTrust, Hilton Hotels, and others. APT has offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, London, Taipei, and Tokyo. Visit www.predictivetechnologies.com to learn more.