MRM Research Roundup: Midyear Report Card, Cowboy Carter Boost, and the Evolving Pumpkin Craze

This edition of Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine's Research Roundup features rewriting the rules of seasonal marketing, snack wrap traffic driver, GLP-1 use impact on F&B, and restaurant marketing challenges.The 2025 Numbers, So FarRestaurant leaders representing more than 5,000 locations shared 2025's top challenges and opportunities alongside their priorities for the rest of the year, including increased marketing and sales to drive revenue, training to improve guest experience and customer loyalty, and balancing cost controls with menu price increases in Restaurant365's biannual industry survey.

Participants reported continued food and labor cost increases, with 89 percent experiencing rising staff expenses, well exceeding the 79 percent of last year's survey who predicted labor cost increases. 82 percent of those experiencing labor increases saw a 1 percent to 5 percent increase, while 15 percent experienced a six to 14 percent jump. Food cost…