Generational Alignment Eva Strasburger , president of StrasGlobal, CEO of Compliance Safe and Vision Group Network co-founder raised a concern about the pace of Gen Z trends, noting that “by the time they had accommodated them or added them to the menu, they had moved on to something else.” Conaghan confirmed this challenge, emphasizing that unless an operator catches a trend early or captures its core essence, like offering a tangy beverage rather than replicating a viral “pickles-in-Coke” fad, it may already be too late to act.
Bonnie Zaring , Executive Director, Food Pro- grams and Offers at RaceTrac Inc, asked about the potential for alienating other demographics when chasing trends. Conaghan explained that while a trendy item might not appeal to everyone, it rarely drives customers away entirely. Datassential tracks generational preferences and “hate it” scores to help avoid overly polarizing items. Offering a unique perspective as an operator of college campus foodservice, Boston University’s VP Auxiliary Services Kris Klinger offered insight into serving a Gen Z–heavy campus population.
His team focuses on handheld, portable foods with bold, authentic flavors, and leverages student pref - erences to test concepts across retail and dining locations. He stressed the power of brand recogni- tion, noting that homegrown concepts often strug- gle to compete with established names like Raising Cane’s. He noted that they offered cold brew coffee in the all-you-can-eat dining halls, yet students still purchased from name brands at other sites on campus. To meet demand for accessibility, they’re also expanding into automated, hot and cold vending solutions for 24/7 convenience, all while maintaining a focus on flavor and portability.
At the end of the day, our primary customer is the student, and they are looking for authentic, they’re looking for bold flavors, and if it’s spicy, as long as they like spice, they love the spice, they
love the uniqueness. Kris Klinger, VP Auxiliary Services, Boston University
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