Trends and Developments in the Dutch Fast-Service Channel

The Dutch fast-service channel is going through a real shift. After several years of growth, the dynamics of the market have changed. This article looks at how outlet numbers have evolved, at the differences between provinces, and at what our Market Monitor shows on brand performance.

Four segments are covered:

• Fast food — salad, pasta, noodles and sushi
• Fast food — shawarma and kebab
• Fast food — snacks and fries
• Restaurants — fast casual

Market Overview: Growth, Then a Turn

Taken over five years, all four segments have grown. The salad, pasta, noodles and sushi segment stands out with an 85% increase between 2019 and 2023, and snack bars had a notable pandemic peak, up 12% between 2020 and 2021.

Active outlets by segment, 2019–2024. Source: Roamler Foodservice Database.

The recent picture is different. Narrowing to 2023–2024, three of the four segments lost outlets, snack bars most visibly at −2.6%. The same pattern runs across the wider eating and drinking market, where almost every category is down on last year.

In some categories the turn came earlier. Ice cream parlours — outside the four segments above, but a useful comparison — rose 9.6% between 2019 and 2021 before falling 5%.

Overview by Province

The regional picture adds detail the national figure hides. North Holland is down across all four segments, most sharply in salad, pasta, noodles and sushi at 25 fewer outlets. North Brabant runs the other way, up 24.

Snacks and fries declined in almost every province — Gelderland, North Brabant and Overijssel most of all — which confirms the national trend above.

Fast casual is the consistent exception, still growing in every province except Drenthe. We have shown previously that the segment has expanded faster than the wider industry since 2017, averaging over 10% a year. It is still growing, but at a visibly slower rate than that long-run average.

Change in active outlets by province and segment, 2023–2024. Source: Roamler Foodservice Database.

What Our Market Monitor Shows

Alongside outlet counts, our Market Monitor tracks which brands are actually present in these outlets. Taking the luxury croquette category, Kwekkeboom and Van Dobben lead on numeric distribution, present in 40.9% and 24% of outlets respectively.

Largest numeric distribution within the luxury croquette category. Source: Roamler Market Monitor.

Looking at movement rather than position, Van Dobben has gained the most against last year, up 10.5 points, with Laan, Elite and Bourgondier also advancing.

Largest growth in numeric distribution vs. last year, within the snack category. Source: Roamler Market Monitor.

Conclusion

The Dutch fast-service channel is in transition. Snack bars and other fast-food formats are closing, North Holland most of all, while fast casual continues to add outlets across nearly the whole country — even if its own growth rate is easing.

For brands selling into this channel, that combination is the difficult part: the total number of outlets is shrinking while the mix inside it changes. Knowing which formats are gaining and which are closing, province by province, is what separates a field plan that works from one built on last year's map. Our Market Monitor covers approximately 8,000 fast-service locations.