• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, March 29, 2012

Fully 61% of people who frequently drink coffee at home (four or more times per week) report that they almost never visit quick-serve restaurants or retail coffee shops for the purpose of buying coffee, according to a survey of QSR customer habits by marketing research/consulting firm CustomersDNA.

Yet, these same people report that they buy either Dunkin’ Donuts- or Starbucks-branded packaged coffee in grocery or other retailers 15% of the time.

“The legacy Folgers and Maxwell House brands still have the upper hand in the in-home coffee market, but the Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts brands are making significant inroads even among coffee drinkers who don’t visit their retail shops,” observes Dave Jenkins, partner in CustomersDNA (Inverness, Ill.). “This is testimony to the powerful brand images that these QSRs have created.”

This latest edition of the firm’s annual QSRdna study also found that just 6% of frequent in-home coffee drinkers are regular (two or more times per week) visitors to QSRs/coffee shops for the purpose of buying coffee.

Conversely, nearly half of those who do visit a QSR or coffee shop for coffee four or more times per week also prepare coffee in their homes at least that often. 

And these people report that they purchase Starbucks- or Dunkin’-branded packaged coffees 30% of the time.

The QSRdna study, based on a national sample of more than 15,000 respondents, probes customers’ visit patterns, purchasing cycles, loyalty and menu preferences over more than 75 QSR chains and 500+ unique menu items.