Fast-food chains are chasing the specialty drink boom. Inside Sonics strategy
As restaurant chains increasingly turn to specialty beverages to attract customers beyond the traditional meal, Sonic Drive-In believes a business model built around drink customization gives it a head start.Marion Campbell, Sonic’s vice president of integrated marketing and communications, told FOX Business that the quick-service restaurant industry is still figuring out how to make specialty beverages a bigger part of its business, while Sonic has spent years building customization into its operations.“I think that the market is just getting started.And QSR in particular is just figuring out a way to serve these types of beverages to their guests and make it a pivotal part of their DNA.
It’s already a part of our DNA,” Campbell said.The competition for beverage customers comes as restaurant brands experiment with specialty drinks, customization and limited-time flavors to give consumers additional reasons to visit.Rival fast-food chains McDonald’s, Taco Bell and Jack in the Box each offer their own versions of dirty sodas.The nonalcoholic beverage market generated $264.1 billion in consumer spending at US foodservice establishments in 2025, accounting for 23% of industry-wide sales, according to data from Technomic.
The data also showed that cold beverage spending in 2025 climbed 3.4%, compared with a 1.2% rise for hot beverages, with Technomic saying that “innovation and consumer preference are driving cold beverages to the forefront of market growth.”For Sonic – which operates more than 3,400 restaurants and generates $5.2 billion in annual system sales – drinks can bring customers through its drive-ins even when they aren’t looking for a burger, hot dog or other full meal.“A beverage-only guest is a very frequent guest.So beverage is always going to play a pivotal role because of the frequency it drives for the business versus just a check driver,” Campbell said.She added that beverages can also increase how much a customer purchases ...