Restaurant/Retail Survey:
Report on the Responses

University City Associates, Inc. (UCA) leases and manages six retail shopping centers on or near the Penn campus. From time to time, UCA sponsors retail/restaurant surveys for the purpose of understanding customers' needs to better serve the Penn community. Information gathered from the surveys is useful in the retail planning process.

UCA's most recent survey was conducted electronically on the World Wide Web. The survey ran for three weeks, from January 22 to February 9, 1996, and was advertised daily in The Daily Pennsylvanian. Announcements about how to access the survey were also made in Almanac, including information about how to get a paper survey for those unable to access the survey by computer. Anyone who viewed "What's New" on the Penn Home Page could access the survey via the Department of Real Estate Home Page.

As an incentive to fill out the survey, prizes in the form of eight gift certificates were awarded in a drawing at the end of the survey. In keeping with the flavor of the survey, UCA purchased these gift certificates from local restaurants and retail stores. The reaction was fantastic! We received 959 responses by computer and 41 responses by paper for a total of 1,000 responses.

Most of the information has been tallied electronically. The answers to the text questions had to be tallied by hand. Of the 1,000 responses, 14 of the paper surveys were received too late to input into the computer, so the results in this report are based on the responses from 986 surveys.The breakdown of the 1,000 respondants is as follows:

	  624	Undergraduate Students		(62%)
	  169	Faculty/Staff			(17%)
	  136	Graduate Students		(14%)
	   43	Other				(4%)     
	   20	Medical Center Employees	(2%)
	    8	HUP Employees			(1%)
	1,000					(100%)

As of November 1995, approximately 22,000 students (including 4,000 part-time) were enrolled at Penn. Of these, 10,000 are undergraduates, 10,000 are graduate/professionals, and 2,000 are other. 4% of the student population responded to the survey.

This report contains each survey question followed by the tally results and pertinent statistics. There are four sections to the tally:

Section 1. Questions 1 through 6--Restaurant portion;
Section 2. Questions 7 through 11--Retail and shopping portion;
Section 3. Questions 12 through 15--"Comment" portion;
Section 4. Comment quotes.

(Except for Question 6, Questions 1 through 11 were multiple choice, and respondants could answer in as much detail as they desired.)

--Helen Walker, Project Manager, Real Estate


Restaurant Section

  1. Where do you go to eat? (Respondents could pick more than one destination.)
    
    Respondents	Destination	Breakdown
    
    869 (88%)	University City		136 faculty/staff 
    					571 undergrads
    					111 grads
    					51 other
    713 (72%)	Center City		110 faculty/staff
    					450 undergrads
    					103 grads
    					50 other
    437 (44%)	South Street		60 faculty/staff
    					311 undergrads
    					43 grads
    					23 other
    188 (19%)	Suburbs			73 faculty/staff
    					62 undergrads
    					27 grads
    					26 other
    125 (13%)	Malls			27 faculty/staff
    					74 undergrads
    					13 grads
    					11 other
    120 (12%)	Manayunk		38 faculty/staff
    					45 undergrads
    					19 grads
    					18 other
    113 (12%)	 Other			40 faculty/staff
    					48 undergrads
    					13 grads
    					12 other
    

  2. How many times a month do you eat out for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
    
    Times Per
    Month For	Breakfast	Lunch		Dinner
    
    0		497 (51%)		46 (  5%)	23 (  2%)
    1-3		283 (28%)		126 (13%)	125 (13%)
    3-5		98 (10%)		173 (18%)	198 (20%)
    5-10 		57 (  6%)		 279 (28%)	329 (33%)
    10-15		26 (  3%)		129 (13%)	182 (19%)
    15-20		11 (  1%)		129 (13%)	82 (  8%)
    20-30		13 (  1%)		104 (10%) 	47 (  5%)
    		986 (100%)		986 (100%)	986 (100%)

    The breakdown of each underlined number above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

  3. When you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner out, how many of these meals are in University City?
    
    Amount For	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
    None		551 (55%)	65 (  7%)	120 (12%)
    Some		105 (11%)	101 (10%)	414 (42%)
    Most		104 (11%)	434 (44%)	399 (41%)
    All		226 (23%)	386 (39%)	53 (  5%)
    		986 (100%)	986 (100%)	986 (100%)
    

    The breakdown of each underlined number above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

  4. When you eat out, how much do you typically spend per person for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
    	For breakfast:	$ 5.00
    	For lunch:	$ 5.00
    	For dinner: 	$10.00
    

  5. . Which restaurants in University City do you frequent most?
    
    Top Ten Choices		   Other Choices
    
    666 (68%) 3401 Food Court	White Dog Cafe
    542 (55%) Houston Hall		Salad Alley/Boccie
    449 (46%) Chili's		Cavanaugh's
    443 (45%) LeBus			Won's Oriental
    423 (43%) Beijing		Fiesta Pizza
    330 (34%) Allegro Pizza		Han Wool
    315 (32%) Burger King		Smokey Joe's
    296 (30%) Boston Market		College Pizza
    291 (30%) Other			O'Hara's Fish House
    247 (25%) McDonald's
    

    The breakdown of the above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

    
    Destination	Undergrads	Faculty/Staff	Grad Students
    
    3401 Food Court		430 (69%)	120 (72%)	82 (60%)
    Houston Hall		368 (59%)	71 (43%)	68 (50%)
    Chili's			325 (52%)	59 (36%)	44 (32%)
    LeBus			247 (40%)	98 (59%)	64 (47%)
    Beijing			265 (43%)	79 (48%)	42 (31%)
    Allegro Pizza		239 (38%)	41 (25%)	38 (28%)
    Burger King		234 (38%)	31 (19%)	37 (27%)
    Boston Market		204 (33%)	47 (28%)	29 (21%)
    Other			162 (26%)	52 (31%)	56 (41%)
    McDonald's		187 (30%)	23 (14%)	27 (20%)
    

  6. What restaurants/types would you like in University City? (This was a comment question with no multiple choice options.)
    Top Ten Restaurants	Top Ten Types of Restaurants
    110 TGI Friday's		175 Italian
    47 Olive Garden			86 Mexican
    33 Pizzaria Uno			46 Chinese
    29 Denny's			33 American
    29 Wendy's			26 Japanese
    25 Bennigan's			25 Seafood
    24 Pizza Hut			24 Thai
    22 IHOP				14 Greek
    17 Taco Bell			14 Middle East
    16 Au Bon Pain			12 Vietnamese
    

    Additional Suggestions
    (Each of the following suggestions was made by 20 or more people):


Retail and Shopping Section

  1. What percent of your shopping is done in University City for goods, services and food?
    
    Percent of
    Shopping for	Goods	Services	Food
    
    0%		50 (  5%)	103 (10%)	40 (  4%)
    10%		 285 (29%)	248 (25%)	126 (13%)
    25%		248 (25%)	179 (18%)	154 (16%)
    50%		186 (19%)	123 (13%)	158 (16%)
    75%		181 (18%)	228 (23%)	319 (32%)
    100%		36 (  4%)	105 (11%)	189 (19%)
    		986 (100%)	986 (100%)	986 (100%)
    

    The breakdown of each underlined number above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

  2. Which University City Shopping Center do you frequent most, and which has the best mix?
    Most Frequented
    No. 1: 34th & Walnut--Shops at Penn
    No. 2: 38th & Walnut--University Plaza
    No. 3: 38th & Spruce--Stouffer Triangle
    No. 4: 39th & Walnut--Walnut Mall
    No. 5: 38th & Walnut--New Garage
    No. 6: 40th & Walnut--University City Shopping Center
    No. 7: 36th & Chestnut--Blue Corner Stores

    The breakdown of the above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

    
    Destination			Undergrads	Faculty/Staff	Grad Students
    
    34th & Walnut (Shops at Penn)		451 (73%)	132 (80%)		81 (60%)
    38th & Walnut (University Plaza)	371 (60%)	113 (68%)		78 (57%)
    38th & Spruce (Stouffer Triangle)	339 (55%)	62 (37%)		48 (35%)
    3900 Walnut (Walnut Mall)		320 (51%)	31 (19%)		43 (32%)
    38th & Walnut (Parking garage)		143 (23%)	46 (28%)		29 (21%)
    40th & Walnut (UC Shop. Ctr.)		110 (18%)	35 (21%)		38 (30%)
    36th & Chestnut (Blue Cor. Stores)	71 (22%)	29 (17%)		31 (23%)
    
    Best Mix				Most Frequented
    No. 1: 34th & Walnut - Shops at Penn			No. 1
    No. 2: 39th & Walnut - Walnut Mall			No. 4
    No. 3: 38th & Spruce - Stouffer Triangle		No. 3
    No. 4: 40th & Walnut - Univ. City Shopping Center	No. 6
    No. 5: 38th & Walnut - New Garage			No. 5
    No. 6: 38th & Walnut - University Plaza			No. 2
    No. 7: 36th & Chestnut - Blue Corner Stores		No. 7
    

    The breakdown of the above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

    
    Destination			Undergrads	Faculty/Staff	Grad Students
    
    34th & Walnut (Shops at Penn)		424 (68%)	101 (61%)	83 (61%)
    3900 Walnut (Walnut Mall)		55 (  9%)	8 ( 5%)		9 ( 7%)
    38th & Spruce (Stouffer Triangle)	54 ( 9%)	18 (11%)	7 ( 5%)
    40th & Walnut (UC Shop. Ctr.)		49 ( 8%)	11 ( 7%)	12 ( 9%)
    38th & Walnut (Parking garage)		11 ( 2%)	1 ( 1%)		2 ( 1%)
    38th & Walnut  (University Plaza)	10 ( 2%)	8 ( 5%)		9 ( 7%)
    36th & Chestnut (Blue Cor. Stores)	2 ( 1%)		1 ( 1%)		2 ( 1%)
    

  3. How much shopping do you do in the following areas?
    
    Location	     None	   Some		Most		All
    
    University City		76 (  8%)	627 (64%)	265 (27%)	18 ( 2%)
    Center City		125 (13%)	621 (63%)	233 (24%)	7 ( 1%)
    South Street		610 (62%)	368 (37%)	 7 (  1%)	1 ( 1%)
    Suburbs			618 (63%)	221 (22%)	140 (14%)	7 ( 1%)
    Malls			345 (35%)	474 (48%)	160 (16%)	7 ( 1%)
    Other			666 (68%)	270 (27%)	48 (  5%)	2 ( 1%)
    

    The breakdown of each underlined number above for undergraduate students, faculty/staff and graduate students is:

  4. Are you a brand name buyer?
    80% of the respondants indicate they are brand name buyers.

  5. In which type of store and where do you do most of your shopping for the following items?
    
    Item		Type of Store		Location
    
    Books		Specialty stores 78%		University City 60%
    						Center City 22%
    
    Clothing	Specialty stores 48%		Center City 45%
    		Department stores 34%		Other 25%
    						University City 9%
    
    Electronics	Specialty stores 65%		Other 39%
    		Discount stores 14%		Center City 25%
    						 University City 18%
    
    Housewares	Department stores 34%		Other 33%
    		Discount stores 29%		Center City 30%
    		Specialty stores 24%		University City 11%
    
    Shoes		Specialty stores 61%		Center City 41%
    		Department stores  22%		Other 31%
    						University City 11%
    
    Sporting goods	Specialty stores 68%		Center City 33%
    		Department stores 11%		Other 31%
    						University City 11%
    
    Video
    retail/sales	Specialty stores 73%		University City 47%
    						Other 25%
    


Comment Section

The following questions had no parameters and no multiple choice options. Respondants could answer in as much detail as they wished.

  1. What retailers would you like to see in the University City area?

  2. Would you patronize the above retailers if they were located at the Western end of campus (39th to 41st Streets, Chestnut to Spruce)?

    If no, why?

  3. What restaurants, services and retail are needed within the medical complex (south side of campus--34th and Spruce, Civic Center Boulevard area)?

    The balance of the replies were divided among the following:

  4. What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of the retail and restaurants in and around the Penn campus area?
    Strengths

    Weaknesses


Some Quotes From Survey Respondents


Almanac

Volume 43 Number 4
September 17, 1996


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