Stadium foodservice is experiencing a significant overhaul. This is according to Ryan Rongo, principal, S2O Consultants, who does a lot of design work in the sports and entertainment segment. Frictionless (or low-friction) marketplaces at stadiums and arenas are one of the consistent asks in the segment today, he says.

Ryan Rongo“We’re transitioning away from belly-up concessions to market-style operations because they nearly quadruple the sales while also saving on labor,” Rongo says. “Data shows that consumers spend 20% more at a market than at a belly-up concession, where there’s little opportunity for impulse sales and people can’t linger or look around.”

Here’s how he designs these money-making markets.

Step 1: Evaluate the space for tech needs

“Some tech providers have limitations on what can or can’t be done,” says Rongo. “For example, two of the bigger contactless shopping system providers require minimum ceiling heights in order to have enough access above for routing camera cables back to the central system. Many also require a small main distribution frame closet.”

In the case of ceiling limitations, Rongo will go with different providers using cameras at the self-checkout stations. If that’s not possible, the project can be downgraded to simple self-checkout machines.

Step 2: Assess the facility and footprint

“Footprint can drive the concept and foodservice programming because you only have so much space to work in,” Rongo says.

A renovation of a 20-foot-deep, belly-up concession stand offers more space to bring in hot food cooking, than say, a 12-foot empty space on a concourse, where retail grab-and-go for pre-packaged items might be more appropriate.

“Open air facilities are a whole different ballgame because we have to meet the health department codes for pest control,” Rongo says. “You also don’t want to do a lot of open-air heated merchandisers in an open-air stadium in Wisconsin, where it’s cold. In that case, we’ll work with manufacturers to get doors added or look at other equipment solutions.”

Step 3: Get the foodservice program and menu straight

Aside from space, menu/foodservice offerings drive equipment decisions. “We have to review what the client wants to offer, the number of items they want to serve. For example, do they want standard fanfare items or something more specialty like barbecue, chicken sandwiches or freshly made pizza?” Rongo says.

In enclosed areas, heavy cooking might be less appropriate. If the space ties to a shared back-of-house kitchen, though, that opens up the prep and cooking possibilities.

The menu dictates the merchandiser selection. If there’s more cold food and grab-and-go, Rongo will often specify convenience-store-like display coolers instead of open air merchandisers. This approach can lead to keeping food colder and it may allow for more storage of backup food for the market. He generally opts for rear-loading units. For hot merchandising, he might specify a cabinet below the unit to hold utensils. To maximize space in high-volume areas, particularly during peak periods, full-height merchandisers with four to five shelves might be the way to go.

“This is great for a heavily visited area and if you have a large population of guests all at once,” Rongo says.

Step 4: Work in some visuals

Operators want to allow guests a line of sight “into the back of the house so they can see the cooking and know their food is being freshly made for them,” Rongo says. “This also helps the operators justify the higher costs of the food.”

That visual element has to then be built into the design. If it’s a renovation, Rongo might remove a merchandiser and replace it with a window into the back of the house or create space in front for a large stone pizza oven. “It’s all about the perceived higher quality — because the food really is higher quality than ever before in this segment.”