White Paper: The Foodservice Flywheel

How grocers build compounding growth through perimeter counter investment.

>> Download the White Paper Here <<

The grocers winning the perimeter aren't running isolated departments. They're running a self-reinforcing flywheel where:

• Elevated foodservice programs drive store traffic
• Traffic turns into discovery with increased orders and basket size
• Orders empower teams with digital production tools
• Teams and digital orders generate data
• Data drives better decisions for continued foodservice program improvement

Every cycle of the flywheel is stronger than the last. This white paper lays out the framework and roadmap to make it real no matter where you are in your grocery foodservice journey.

The opportunity is clear. The gap is bigger.

Today the deli foodservice category alone is worth $52.1 billion. Deli and prepared foods are tied as the #1 driver of store traffic, cited by 56% of retailers. 70% percent of consumers buy deli-prepared foods at least once a month, 33% once a week. And prepared foods are projected to be an 8% sales growth driver in 2026 alone.

62% of retailers plan to increase their technology spend this year while only 20% have reached an advanced, fully integrated omnichannel strategy. Most are still running their perimeter counters on analog infrastructure that wasn't built for today's consumer or the complexity of grocery foodservice.

The gap between perimeter potential and perimeter performance isn't a staffing problem or a technology problem. It's a systems problem.

‍The Foodservice Flywheel is the framework that remedies it.

What's inside the White Paper

Prepared foods continue to grow as shoppers seek convenient, better-for-you meal options that offer real value. For retailers entering the space, the key is designing a program that's intuitive for customers and easy for stores to execute. FoodStorm was the right fit for us because it supports that streamlined approach and integrates seamlessly with our broader technology ecosystem. - Mark Bramhall, VP of Deli, Sprouts

Who should read this?

This white paper is written for grocery retail leaders making decisions about their perimeter counter programs: SVPs of Fresh, Category VPs, VP/Directors of Deli & Foodservice, and Chief Merchandising Officers who know the opportunity is real but want a clear, data-backed framework for how to capture it.

Research draws on FMI Power of Foodservice at Retail 2025, FMI U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends 2026, Progressive Grocer State of the Industry 2026, and more.

The best time to start the flywheel is today

Early movers in perimeter digitization are pulling ahead and the compounding nature of the flywheel makes the gap harder to close over time. Whether you're running analog operations or already have one or two digitized counters, there's a starting point in this framework built for where you are today.

>> Download the White Paper Here <<