What We Do

Restaurants are a major slice of American life

Restaurants have become a huge part of our lives, a bulwark of our communities ... and a strong force our economy.

• The restaurant industry generates $580 billion in annual sales, and serves more than 130 million guests each day.
• The restaurant industry is the nation's second largest private-sector employer. We employ 12.7 million people, and provide more than 9 percent of the nation's jobs.
• Nearly half of all adults have worked in the industry at some point during their lives.

We are restaurants' champion — hundreds of thousands of members strong

The members of the National Restaurant Association come from every corner of the restaurant/hospitality industry. Our restaurant members come from chef-owned restaurants, family restaurant chains, quickservice franchisees, contract foodservice organizations, and all other segments of the industry.

Some are small independent businesses with a single location, and others are large companies with thousands of locations worldwide. And some of our members are restaurants operating within entirely different businesses. They are located inside hospitality businesses such as hotels and inside retail businesses such as grocery or convenience stores. They operate foodservice in schools, hospitals and workplaces.

The Association also has thousands of allied members — suppliers, distributors and consultants who serve the industry itself — and student and faculty members who are part of our industry’s educational community.

The Association's network combines nationwide and state-by-state Support

The truly national National Restaurant Association works closely with a network of 53 state restaurant associations. Working with our state restaurant association partners, we collectively represent an enterprise with 750 employees including more than 200 national, state and local lobbyists representing our diverse restaurant industry.

Our Foundation invests in the future

The first job experience of one in four U.S. adults was in a restaurant. The restaurant industry is uniquely attractive among American industries for entry-level jobs, personal development and growth, employee and manager career paths, and ownership and wealth creation. That is why the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation furthers the education of tomorrow’s restaurant industry professionals and plays a key role in promoting job and career opportunities in the restaurant industry by allocating millions of dollars a year toward industry scholarships and educational programs.

Focusing on four areas that directly affect our members' success

These industry imperatives define all that the National Restaurant Association does.

• Profitability and entrepreneurship — improving restaurant industry profitability and the success rate for new and established restaurant operators.
• Jobs and careers — increasing labor supply and tenure and improving management practices related to specific drivers of employee satisfaction.
• Food and healthy living — increasing food and alcohol safety/security in the restaurant industry, and increasing restaurant nutrition information, availability and consumer awareness.
• Sustainability and social responsibility — improving water and energy usage and other sustainability practices in the restaurant industry, and illustrating and leveraging the charitable activities of the restaurant industry.

Providing initiatives, programs and services to our members

• Advocacy and representation — building and sustaining positive public opinion and a favorable political environment.
• Tools and solutions — helping grow revenues, increase profitability, and develop employees.
• Education and networking — providing opportunities to connect and learn from each other.
• Research and insights — anticipating and preparing for emerging trends that could impact restaurants.
• Responsible stewardship — providing thought leadership to inspire community involvement and impact.

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