Competitive Advantage Analysis of the Fast-Food Industry's Key Players

This essay examines the competitive advantages of key players in the fast-food industry, focusing on Chick-Fil-A, Chipotle Mexican Grill, and Panera Bread. Chick-Fil-A's people-centric approach and unique practices give it a competitive edge, while Chipotle leverages natural ingredients and transparency to appeal to health-conscious consumers. Panera Bread utilizes product differentiation and cost-effective purchasing strategies to maintain its competitiveness. The essay also addresses the industry's challenge of shifting consumer preferences towards healthier lifestyles, highlighting Chipotle's success in overcoming this issue through its commitment to natural ingredients. Furthermore, it discusses factors contributing to the success of fast-food franchise competitors, such as product taste, prompt service, and strategic location. Desklib provides this essay as a resource for students, offering access to a wealth of solved assignments and past papers.

Running Head: COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 1
Discussion: Competition in the Fast-food Industry
Student’s Name
University Affiliation

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 2
Major Competitors in the Fast-food industry and their sources of Competitive Advantage.
Chick-Fil-A is the most prominent fast food business which serves to impact the world
through walking the talk of its founder Truett Cathy which states that they are in the people’s
business, not the chicken business. From the above it has been therefore able to maintain its
competitive edge through, for example, doing common things in an uncommon way, being lead
and driven by purpose and making the customers their priority (Venkatesan, 2017). In doing the
above uniquely, Chick-Fil-A from the article was ranked the top with a score of 86 as the highest
company score to date among other competitors (International Business Times, 2018). Despite
being the leader in the market there are other major competitors in the fast food industry which
include the following:
Chipotle Mexican Grill fast food Company which has several competitive advantages
sustaining it in the market hence being a major competitor of Chick-Fil-A. The company has
various sources of competitive advantage which includes the following: Use of natural
ingredients where the company commits to the use of their raised animals, ingredients and
produce from the local farms. This shows that Chipotle holds on natural ingredients rather than
the genetically modified components. Chipotle has also an open kitchen which clearly depicts the
maximum transparency of the ingredients being used (Morris, 2015). Chipotle sometimes
engages in giving out, for example, free burritos and guacamole and occasionally offers a buy
one get one free. Use of the above strategies has greatly positioned it to be competitive in the
given market segment where most people prefers natural food and discounts on their purchase.
The other major competitor is Panera Bread with various sources of competitive
advantage which include the following: Panera bread has over a thousand restaurants which
facilitate discounts through the purchase of their food and non-food products for its restaurants.

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 3
Panera bread has greatly maximized on the use of product differentiation where it has a strong
brand with food and bakery products cherished by many. From the above strategies, Panera
Bread, therefore, remains competitive through lowering their cost on their products from their
quantity discount received from their purchases without compromising the quality of what they
produce (Littler, 2015).
The Current Issue faced by the Industry
The major challenge faced by the industry is where the majority of people has shifted to
healthier lifestyles. Many fast food companies receive critics that their products are related to
health issue problems where most people have seen it a concern and switched to another healthy
lifestyle for example natural foods (An, 2016).
The Major Competitor having the Strongest Competitive Advantage and Overcoming the
Current Issue.
From the above-highlighted competitors, Chipotle Mexican Grill uniquely stands to be a
major competitor having the strongest competitive advantage. This is achieved as a result of
embracing the use of natural ingredients and it's own raised animals which gives it an advantage
of countering the threat of people switching to a healthier lifestyle.
The argument for the Success of the fast-food Franchise’s Competitors
The fast-food franchise’s competitors have gained success in the industry due to various
reasons which include the following: the competitors lay emphasis on their products taste which
helps in winning the customers who keep on coming for more. The other way includes serving
the customers promptly which does not delay their schedule hence ensuring full customer
satisfaction. The location of the business also acts as a vital strategy in attracting the customers

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 4
to frequent their premises, for example, situating the fast food outlets near other businesses and
companies where the staff can comfortably visit. In embracing the above factors, it is with no
doubt that the fast food franchises competitors will remain active and competitive.

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 5
References
An, R. (2016). Fast-food and full-service restaurant consumption and daily energy and
nutrient intakes in US adults. European journal of clinical nutrition, 70(1), 97.
International Business Times. (2018). Best Restaurants in USA: Chick-Fil-A Trumps
Competition, McDonald’s Falls Out Of Favor. Retrieved from
https://www.ibtimes.com/best-restaurants-usa-chick-fil-trumps-competition-
mcdonalds-falls-out-favor-1990232
Littler, D. (2015). Cost leadership strategy. Wiley Encyclopedia of Management, 1-1.
Morris, R. J. (2015). Sorry, no carnitas: balancing “Food with Integrity” and growth at
Chipotle. The CASE Journal, 11(3), 369-371.
Venkatesan, R. (2017). Executing on a customer engagement strategy.