Breakfast test reshapes Betty's expansion

Transport hubs emerge as a priority for future restaurant openings.

Betty's Burgers is reconsidering where it opens restaurants after its breakfast-focused beverage push near a major railway station showed strong early demand.

“We're a late starter at the moment,” Geoff Bannister, regional manager for New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory at Betty's Burgers, told QSR Media. “We really need to very quickly establish a coffee brand just as much as a breakfast offering.”

The chain has invested in coffee equipment and is testing breakfast and coffee at its Parramatta restaurant, where the trial has been running for two months.

Breakfast accounted for more than 8% of quick-service restaurant transactions across 22 Australian brands in the 12 months to July, up from less than 5% a year earlier, according to a July report by Fonto.

Major chains, including Guzman y Gomez and KFC, have also expanded or tested breakfast products.

Bannister said the Parramatta Square location, which sits beside a major railway station, has prompted the company to reconsider its site selection strategy.

“Looking at our portfolio, all 76 restaurants are in high streets or shopping centres,” he said via Zoom. “Looking at transport hubs, there's significant growth around railway and metro lines.”

The first eight weeks have given their property and leasing team reason to think differently about where those next restaurants should be, he added.

Betty's Burgers aims for coffee to contribute 10% to 15% of total sales. Bannister said coffee already accounts for about 10% of transactions and contributes 7% to 9% of weekly sales during the trial.

Ben Dixon, founder and CEO at Fonto, said transport hubs could become a significant opportunity for Betty's if it builds breakfast habits around commuters.

He said coffee is essential for breakfast, but the overall meal is what creates repeat visits.

“If they're going to form a ritual, and breakfast is a bit about a ritual, then it has to be a craveable ritual,” Dixon said in the same Zoom call.

Bannister said the trial has also shown customers buying lunch alongside breakfast, reducing the need to stop again later in the day.

Dixon said Fonto's data showed similar behaviour amongst tradespeople, who often buy breakfast together with snacks and drinks for later.

He added that brands have yet to fully capitalise on menu items that travel well, creating another opportunity for Betty's Burgers.