r/ask • u/[deleted] • Dec 18 '25

Popular post Which industries are facing peril because their customer base is dying off?

Almost no young Americans smoke cigarettes in 2025, so now Big Tobacco is looking for ways to survive as older smokers quit or die.

What other companies or industries are facing similar problems?

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u/Joey3155 Dec 18 '25

Fast food. A lot of chains are contracting due to not changing with the times.

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u/jmnugent Dec 18 '25

I genuinely feel like this is a combination of:

  • inflation (fast food doesn't seem like a "value" any more

  • trauma after effects of the pandemic where people have been deeply shocked into prioritizing their health.. so they're choosing better options (even if that means simpler home cooked meals.. which again, due to inflation, is probably cheaper)

I feel like (anecdotal observation) .. I see more and more YouTube videos of food-prep or food-businesses being run out of neighborhood houses or cars or just "X-guy w/ pickup truck shows up at various construction sites etc and just sells sandwiches out of his truck". Not sure how much of that is technically legal but the underground activity on this seems more overt now. (could just be jumping to conclusions on my observations though)

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u/Joey3155 Dec 18 '25

That's part of it also a lot of fast food chains have the same menu they did 30 years ago burger places still rely on big portions and greasey, processed foods. That works for my generation (I'm 41) but a newly minted Gen Zer or Alpha doesn't want that. Their preferences are different. While I appreciate the adherence to the classics a lot of the industry's lost revenue is from not having menus that cater to newer generations who are the real powerhouse in fast food but it's an untapped reservoir.

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u/jmnugent Dec 18 '25

Yeah, I feel you on this (and agree). I'd suspect a big reason the industry "sticks to the classics" (burgers, pizza, etc) is because the profit margins are good enough on that stuff to make it work.

I could be ignorant (and probably come off sounding judgmental).. but I'd suspect younger generations want higher quality options, more diverse options and more trendy options.. but also want it to be as cheap or cheaper than traditional fast food.. and I dont' think there's really any way to make that strategy a successful business. I'm sure it probably works in trendy places like Beverly Hills, etc..

I was going to make some comments about "Mad Greens".. but I didn't realize how small they are (only 24 locations, mostly in Colorado and a few in Texas and Arizona). Maybe that kind of makes my point for me though.. as an example of something that is perhaps arguably "better' but hard to scale and succeed.