‘Foodetainment’ Chains Feast on Foot Traffic Despite Sluggish Sector

Food and entertainment chains including Dave & Buster’s and Main Event are experiencing a surge in traffic, despite reporting lower-than-expected results in the second quarter and the consumer discretionary sector showing signs of softening.

According to a new report from Placer.ai, the two “foodetainment” chains are seeing increased weekday and weekend visits as consumers seek immersive experiences during the summer. Placer.ai found that foot traffic at Dave & Buster’s and Main Event— the latter being a food and entertainment chain catering to youths and adults primarily in southern and midwestern states—rose by 6.9% and 4.7% respectively on a year-over-year basis. Both chains draw approximately 10% of their total clientele on Saturday evenings, but foot traffic on Friday nights and Sunday mornings is also up, according to the report.

“Friday visits picked up between 7:00 and 10:00 PM, as people likely wrapped up their work weeks and headed out to unwind with a drink and some skee ball,” the report stated. “Sunday visits followed the opposite pattern, with stronger foot traffic earlier in the day that tapered off towards evening, as people put down their pool cues and got ready for the upcoming week.”

The report found that between August 2023 and July 2024, customers traveling less than 10 miles comprised 43.9% of weekend visitors to Dave & Buster’s and 49.7% of weekend visitors to Main Event. During weekdays over the same period, the percentage of customers traveling less than 10 miles increased to 49.4% for Dave & Buster’s and 55.3% for Main Event, suggesting that both chains are particularly appealing to locals during the week.

Placer.ai found that consumers traveling more than 100 miles were more likely to visit either chain on weekdays, and said this suggests that the chains are also attracting vacationers. The report attributed some of the surge in foot traffic to Dave & Buster’s and Main Event’s weekday promotions, such as all-you-can-eat deals, “Happy Hour” specials, and even season passes that encourage customers to visit midweek.

Although foot traffic at Dave & Buster’s and Main Event has surged over the last year, both chains experienced a decline in revenue and net income from March to May compared to the same period in 2023. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, the parent company of both chains, reported net income of $41.4 million during this period, down from $70.1 million the previous year.

This decline mirrors broader trends in the consumer discretionary sector, which has been one of the worst-performing sectors in the S&P 500 this year, second only to real estate. A report from S&P Global noted that while the index has risen by 60% since mid-October 2020, the consumer discretionary sector has only grown by 19%, reflecting ongoing challenges in the industry post-pandemic.