Since 2022, consumers have found that many catering brands have quietly adjusted their prices.
On February 16, many Starbucks products in the Chinese market increased their prices on Weibo.
According to the official Starbucks APP, the price of each cup type of latte, Fu Ruibai and other products is 1 yuan higher than the previous price, and the price of each cup type such as American coffee is increased by 2 yuan.
Starbucks told The Paper that its pricing was determined after considering a number of factors such as operating costs, and said it was the first time it has adjusted prices in the Chinese market since November 2018.
According to Securities Daily, from February 17, McDonald's in South Korea raised the prices of 30 dishes by 100 to 300 won (about 0.5-1.5 yuan).
McDonald's told the surging news reporter that McDonald's China has not raised prices recently, and only adjusted prices a few years ago.
According to incomplete statistics from The Paper, in the past 4 months, 3 chain coffee brands and 2 chain catering brands in China have adjusted their prices.
The collective price increase of chain coffee: it is the operating cost
Compared with Starbucks' price increase on the first day of the hot search, the price increases of Luckin and Tims are less "eye-catching".
As early as the end of last year, a consumer posted that the price of the same coffee in different stores of Ruixing Coffee differed by 2-3 yuan. In response, the official account of Ruixing Coffee replied to the post, saying that factors such as rent, logistics, and operating costs were comprehensively considered. , and differentiate pricing according to the actual situation of each store.
The surging news reporter consulted the customer service of Ruixing Coffee as a consumer. He said that this is the company's normal price adjustment, and said that because the order is placed in the applet or App, the system will automatically match the nearest store, and customers can also choose to change the price for a cheaper price. stores for consumption.
Tims, a Canadian coffee brand that has only been in the Chinese market for three years, has also adjusted its prices from January 1.
Some consumers have posted shopping records showing that in August last year, the "classic bagel series package" was 22 yuan, and it has risen to 26 yuan in early January this year, and is now 28.9 yuan.
The rich latte has risen from the previous 22 yuan to 24 yuan.
The Paper reporter consulted Tims' human customer service as a consumer. The reporter replied that after comprehensively considering the current market operation, it adjusted the prices of a small number of products.
Chain restaurants get together to raise prices a year ago
"Even mashed potatoes have gone up by 5 cents." On December 30, 2021, some consumers found that some products delivered by KFC Home Express have quietly increased in price. For example, under the "Home God Card" discount, coffee was originally 7 yuan, and the price has risen. After the price is 10 yuan; the original Italian style pasta was 21.5 yuan, and the price increased by 2 yuan.
KFC China online customer service stated that due to cost reasons, KFC will make a unified price adjustment for the national menu on December 27, 2021.
In addition, because the cost of restaurants in different regions is different, some products in different restaurants will have different prices, and the prices of different sales channels will also be different.
In terms of McDonald's, the surging news reporter found that the price of McDonald's various hamburger sets "Mike Delivery" has increased by 5 to 6 yuan, involving products including the Big Mac mid-course meal, the unsuspected tyrant double-layer beef burger mid-course meal, etc.
For example, in November 2021, the price of the Big Mac medium set meal in the McDonald's delivery applet "Mile Delivery" is 37 yuan, and the current price is 43 yuan, an increase of 6 yuan.
In this regard, the surging news reporter called the McDonald's China Customer Center as a consumer. The customer service explained that in combination with changes in food raw materials and operating costs, McDonald's will regularly evaluate and adjust the price structure and promotion mechanism, and the specific price announced by the ordering channel shall prevail. .
Upstream cost transmission, price increases may be a global trend
The catering industry has pointed the reasons for price increases to costs. Yu Jian, general manager of Kantar Worldpanel Greater China, explained to The Paper that for many food and beverage companies, upstream costs have remained high since last year. This situation Not only exists in China, but also globally.
"Many companies initially hoped to absorb costs by improving operational efficiency, but this year, the inflation of raw materials and logistics costs at the global level is very serious, and many domestic and foreign companies have raised prices one after another. This is actually a global phenomenon and trend. ." Yu Jian said.
From the cost side, the price of coffee beans, the main raw material of coffee, continues to rise.
Bloomberg reported on February 19 that global supplies were tight due to a sharp drop in production in Brazil, the largest coffee bean grower, and soaring import and transportation costs.
ICE monitoring shows that coffee stocks have fallen to a 22-year low.
Not only that, but it also caused the price of Arabica beans on the Intercontinental Exchange to climb to $2.59 a pound, a 10-year high.
Bloomberg said there is still uncertainty about this year's coffee bean production ahead of the southern hemisphere winter, when unfavorable weather conditions may extend the shortage of coffee beans into a third year.
For catering companies in the downstream of the supply chain, the cost of upstream growth last year is gradually being passed on.
Yu Jian said that catering companies will be affected by the upstream supply chain in terms of purchasing ingredients, containers and packaging, which will have an impact on corporate profits.
Sunnong Development (002299.SZ), a major chicken supplier such as KFC and McDonald's, pointed out in the 2021 annual performance forecast that due to the continued high prices of bulk raw materials such as corn and soybean meal, the company's breeding costs increased year-on-year. Affected by this, the company's annual profit A decrease of about 1.5 billion yuan compared with 2020.
It is worth noting that there will be a round of price hikes by food companies in 2021.
According to incomplete statistics from The Paper, the companies involved include Hengshun Vinegar (600305), Haitian Flavor (603288), Jiajia Food (002650), Xuetian Salt (600929), etc. in the condiment industry; Food (603345), Haixin Food (002702), Sanquan Food (002216), etc.; Keming Food (002661) in the upstream pastry industry; Angel Yeast (600298) and Ligao Food (300973) in the food processing industry.
In terms of packaging materials, in May 2021, due to the shortage of raw materials and the impact of plastic restrictions, domestic paper prices once set off a wave of price increases. Since October last year, due to the high cost of raw materials and energy, paper prices ushered in a second wave. rise.