E. coli and norovirus are not the next big things with teens. According to a new poll from researchers at Piper Jaffray, Chipotle‘s stock is falling with people who have no money, but influence every single purchasing decision of their doting parents and are therefore very important to food brands.
While the burrito company still had the second-highest market share of teen spending among restaurants (followed by Chick-fil-A, Panera Bread, and McDonald’s), the 2016 Taking Stock With Teens Survey found that their share had dropped off from previous years following their supply chain issues that led to all of their restaurants being shut down briefly.
But don’t go thinking teens are paragons of good culinary decision-making just yet. The top restaurant among all teens was Starbucks, which boasted a 14% market share among the teens surveyed. Wait one second! A company that has been routinely criticized for the amount of sugar in its products is popular with people a few years removed from trick-or-treating? Is it possible?
Yep. Overall, the survey shows that teens lean a lot more toward fast-casual brands than full-service restaurants. The survey found that “teens are choosing limited-service concepts at a 50% greater rate than full-service concepts.”
Outside of food, the survey found that teens are spending a ton more time on Netflix and YouTube than traditional TV (natch) and that Nike clothing is astoundingly popular among teenagers, with the athletic-wear company having a 21% market share among teens surveyed.
