Case Study: Chick-fil-A

Consumers have long sought simplicity and convenience when shopping. But the arrival of Blue Apron in 2012 and competitors such as Plated and HelloFresh suggested that, for many, convenience could be provided in the form of a meal kit-a box ordered online containing every ingredient one would need to make dinner at home, perfectly measured, nothing more or less. The idea simplifies the shopping experience while still allowing the consumer to prepare dinner expertly at home. The success of these delivery startups has not gone unnoticed, as Amazon and Walmart have entered the market with their own meal kit offerings, ordered online. Grocery chains such as Whole Foods and Wegman's have also introduced their own versions of meal kits.

In 2018, the restaurant chain Chick-fil-A decided to explore the possibilities in the meal kit business, with their Mealtime Kits. Much like its online and in-store competitors, Mealtime Kits provide pre-portioned ingredients for full recipes, all centered around Chick-fil-A's famous chicken. Dinner preparation at home takes about 30 minutes. Each kit serves two people and costs $15.89. Five different Mealtime Kit recipes are available: Chicken Parmesan, Chicken Enchiladas, Dijon Chicken, Pan Roasted Chicken, and Chicken Flatbread. Regular Chick-fil-A customers might find these recipes interesting or even surprising, since none of these is on the regular menu at the restaurant.

To test the viability of Mealtime Kits, Chick-fil-A planned a limited rollout in its hometown of Atlanta. From August to November 2018, Mealtime Kilts were available at 150 Chick-fil-A restaurants in the Atlanta area. Customers were able to order the kit inside the restaurant at the counter, at the drive-thru window, or online through the Chick-fil-A One mobile app. In addition, Chick-fil-A provided a form on its website so that customers nationwide could express their enthusiasm for the meal kit coming to a nearby restaurant. The regional rollout and online form provided Chick-fil-A with valuable insights to determine if the meal kit should be rolled out to the nationwide market.

A consumer study of meal kits conducted in 2018 by investors.com revealed some interesting facts. When customers make meal kits at home, they tend to say that the food tastes and smells better than if they had made the same recipe without the help of a meal kit. According to Packaged Facts, meal kit sales revenues in 2017 reached $5 billion, estimated to increase to $10 billion by 2020. Although the largest share of current meal kit sales are online, Chick-fil-A believes that it can get a share of this business by getting customers to come in and pick up the kits.

Please answer the following questions by giving several points/elaborations/answers:

1. Make a recommendation to Chick-fil-A for market testing the Mealtime Kits.
2. What would be the key information you would need to gain from the limited rollout? From the online forms?
3. Would you recommend any other kind of market testing?
4. And how would you ensure that the results you obtained were valid?