Dry January isn’t just a personal challenge anymore—it’s a movement that’s changing the way Americans consume (or don’t consume) alcohol. What started as a niche trend has gone mainstream, with more people than ever choosing to take a break from drinking at the start of the year. And that shift is making waves for businesses that rely on alcohol sales.

Bars and liquor stores, in particular, are feeling the impact, with changes in foot traffic that reflect evolving consumer habits. At dataplor, we dug into visitation patterns from December through February (2021-2025) to uncover the real story behind Dry January’s influence—spotting clear seasonal and regional trends that show just how much behavior is shifting.

Key Takeaways:

• 2025 saw the most widespread Dry January adoption, with all states showing a decline in bar and liquor store visits from December to January.
• Bars remain more resilient than liquor stores, likely due to their social atmosphere and non-alcoholic offerings.
• Certain states, like Maine and South Dakota, consistently show larger declines, reflecting stronger Dry January participation.
• Other states, such as New Mexico and Louisiana, displayed greater variability, suggesting that factors like local events and weather may play a role in foot traffic trends.

Seasonal Trends: The Rise of Dry January

Analyzing month-over-month foot traffic for bars and liquor stores from December through February across multiple years (2021-2025) revealed several key patterns:

• There was no significant Dry January effect in 2021-2022, likely due to post-pandemic social activity boosting bar visits.
• 2022-2023 showed the first clear Dry January impact, with a noticeable drop in January and a slower recovery in February.
• 2023-2024 saw a similar January decline, but February rebounded quickly, suggesting only temporary behavior changes.
• 2024-2025 displayed a moderate drop in January, followed by a continued decline in February, indicating a sustained shift in drinking habits.

These trends suggest that Dry January has transitioned from a niche health challenge to a widely recognized movement affecting consumer behavior.

Bars vs. Liquor Stores: Who’s Getting Hit the Hardest?

Comparing bar and liquor store visits over the December–February period highlights key differences in how these businesses are affected:

• Bars continue to attract more visitors and maintain steadier traffic throughout the winter months.
• Liquor stores peaked in early 2022 and have seen a decline since, with a slow recovery starting in late 2023.
• Bars show more resilience due to their diverse offerings, including food, social environments, and non-alcoholic beverage options.
• Liquor stores face greater volatility as consumers cut back on alcohol purchases during Dry January.

These findings indicate that while Dry January influences alcohol consumption, bars may weather the trend better than retail liquor stores.

Regional Trends: Dry January Adoption by State

A state-by-state analysis of foot traffic changes from December to January reveals regional differences in Dry January participation:

• All states had bars and liquor stores that saw some level of decline, reinforcing the nationwide adoption of Dry January.
• Maine and South Dakota consistently experienced the largest drops, suggesting strong engagement in the movement.
• New Mexico, Louisiana, and Indiana showed more variability, likely due to local events, seasonal weather, or other external factors.

These variations highlight how Dry January adoption isn’t uniform across the U.S., with certain states embracing the trend more aggressively than others.

Year-Over-Year Growth: Is Dry January Here to Stay?

Analyzing four years (2022-2025) of state-by-state participation levels provides insight into Dry January’s growing influence:

• Maine consistently exhibited strong Dry January participation, with significant drops in bar and liquor store visits each year.
• 2025 marked the strongest and most widespread Dry January adoption, with every state showing declines in foot traffic.
• 2023 displayed trends similar to 2025, suggesting that Dry January participation has been steadily increasing.

As Dry January becomes more mainstream, bars and liquor stores may need to adapt their offerings to retain customers during this period. Given the sustained growth of Dry January, bars and liquor stores should consider new strategies to maintain customer engagement:

1. Expand Non-Alcoholic Offerings – Many consumers are reducing alcohol intake but still want to socialize. Adding mocktails and premium non-alcoholic options can keep foot traffic steady.
2. Promote Social Experiences – Bars that emphasize live music, trivia nights, and food pairings can attract customers who are abstaining from alcohol.
3. Leverage Seasonal Promotions – Liquor stores may benefit from promoting Dry January-friendly options like non-alcoholic beer, wines, and spirits.
4. Understand Regional Variations – Knowing how Dry January impacts different states can help businesses tailor their marketing efforts accordingly.

The numbers are in, and Dry January isn’t slowing down. In fact, 2025 marks the biggest year yet for participation. Bars are holding their own, thanks to their social draw, but liquor stores are seeing more ups and downs as consumers rethink their alcohol purchases.

Mobility data tells the full story, highlighting where and when these changes happen. For businesses, staying ahead means using these insights to refine their marketing strategies and adjust their approach. As Dry January continues to reshape the industry, those who pay attention to the trends will be the ones that thrive.

The dataplor team is proud to announce the launch of its mobility product, which enables businesses to understand how people interact with specific locations. By combining dataplor’s extensive point-of-interest (POI) data with footfall counts, companies can utilize actionable location intelligence. This data gives organizations a competitive edge by highlighting real-world consumer behaviors.

The Problem with Existing Data Sources

Many businesses rely on demographic or static data that fails to capture consumers’ dynamic behavior. In-house data collection can be costly and inconsistent and may not include in-depth foot traffic data that delivers better insights. 

dataplor’s mobility product tackles these issues by showcasing:

• Market Potential: Ascertain a location’s popularity and activity patterns.
• Actionable Insights: Assess economic trends, evolving customer interests, and competitors’ performance.
• Changing Patterns: Develop data-driven forecasts and action plans for untapped markets.

These insights empower businesses to uncover key learnings beyond merely a location, including how individuals and customers engage with a specific place.

What Sets dataplor’s Mobility Product Apart

dataplor’s mobility product operates on a foundation of 3.9 trillion movement data points. Behind its comprehensive location intelligence and in-depth insight offerings, dataplor also upholds strict privacy standards and secure data practices.

Comprehensive Coverage

dataplor delivers monthly refreshed and strategic mobility data to ensure businesses always have the most relevant information. Currently, dataplor’s mobility product covers urban and rural areas in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, with plans to expand coverage to 40 countries by late 2025. dataplor enables businesses to streamline operations with a single vendor for high-quality, global POI data coverage and location intelligence.

Granular Insights

Rather than relying on broad demographic data, dataplor’s mobility data offers precise information down to a specific POI. This level of detail creates deeper and more impactful use cases for companies across industries.

Privacy-First Approach

Privacy is a top priority for dataplor. Our data is aggregated, anonymized, and fully GDPR-compliant, without collecting or using any personally identifiable information (Pll). This ensures ethical and secure data practices.

How Industries Can Leverage Foot Traffic Data

Businesses can optimize their decision-making using dataplor’s mobility data paired with the most comprehensive POI data for the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Industries that can benefit from these insights include:

• Retail: Identify optimal locations for new stores and customize inventory using foot traffic patterns.
• Consumer Packaged Goods: Track consumer interactions with retail outlets to inform product placement and promotions.
• Marketing: Enhance targeting strategies by knowing where and when consumers are active.
• Real Estate: Evaluate market trends and property performance to guide investments and developments.
• Urban Planning and City Governments: Optimize public spaces, transportation systems, and resource allocation to meet community needs.
• Quick-Service Restaurants: Identify optimal locations, evaluate existing location performance, and analyze customer behavior. 

dataplor recently analyzed foot traffic data for major fast-food restaurants across the United States, delivering valuable insights into customer movement and restaurant performance. 

Foot Traffic Insights in the Fast-Food Industry

By understanding foot traffic patterns, fast-food chains can enhance their market presence and customer engagement. Adjusting for the number of restaurant locations, dataplor found the following foot traffic trends in our analysis:

• Wendy’s was the most popular nationally, appearing in the “Top 5” in foot traffic 51 times, followed by Raising Cane’s at 39.
• In the Southeast, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, and Subway tied for the most ubiquitous, based on how many times a given restaurant ranked in the “Top 5” for the total number of stores in a state.
• In-N-Out Burger achieved the top ranking for foot traffic in five states in the West but is tied for fourth place overall for foot traffic in the region.
• In the Southwest, In-N-Out Burger was most likely to be ranked first for foot traffic in a given state, while Raising Cane’s took that title in the Northeast.

Restaurants can utilize this kind of data to identify optimal areas to open new locations, evaluate the performance of existing sites, and tailor menu offerings and promotions based on customer behavior. The fast-food chain analysis is just one example of how businesses can leverage dataplor’s insights to optimize customer interactions.

Take the First Step Toward Smarter Growth

dataplor’s mobility product revolutionizes businesses’ understanding of consumer behavior. By showcasing market potential, revealing actionable insights, and supporting data-driven forecasts, it enables companies to make smarter decisions and optimize their growth against competitors. 

Interested in leveraging mobility data for location intelligence? Learn what it is and how other businesses are using it in our webinar on February 26, from 10:00 AM – 10:30 AM PST.

Are you interested in evaluating dataplor’s location intelligence? We offer free data samples so you can confidently choose the right data provider.

Discover how scarcity and regional loyalty drive America’s favorite fast-food brands.

Americans love fast food, but how can we know which offerings are really the most popular? At dataplor, we know it’s the numbers that unlock deep insights. We recently put this to the test by analyzing foot traffic trends among America’s most popular fast-food chains, as part of the launch of our new mobility product. 

Combining extensive point-of-interest (POI) data with footfall counts, our location intelligence product equips businesses with deep insights into consumer interactions with specific locations. The mobility product gives businesses information to help optimize their decision-making using its foundation of 3.9 trillion movement data points.

Our analysis was centered on three questions: 

• Based on how often a restaurant is ranked in the “Top 5” in foot traffic in a given state, which brands seem to be the most popular?
• Based on how often a restaurant is ranked in the “Top 5” for the total number of stores in a given state, which brands are the most ubiquitous?
• Based on how often the restaurant is ranked first for foot traffic in a given state, which brands are the most well-loved?

The results showcased surprising results, answering the question, “Do more locations always equal greater customer loyalty and increased foot traffic?”

Nationwide, Bigger Does Not Always Mean Better

On the national scale, Wendy’s led as the most popular chain in terms of foot traffic, followed by Raising Cane’s, Chick-fil-A, Five Guys, and McDonald’s. McDonald’s and Subway tied as the most widespread chains overall, with Burger King, Wendy’s, Dairy Queen, and Sonic Drive-In rounding out the list. Only two of those most common restaurants (Wendy’s and McDonald’s) are also present in the top five for most foot traffic, suggesting that being everywhere doesn’t mean you’re going to be everyone’s top choice.

So, which brands are winning hearts and stomachs across the nation?

Scarcity may make the stomach grow hungrier. Wendy’s and Raising Cane’s took the top two spots for “most likely to be ranked first for foot traffic in a state” nationwide, followed by In-N-Out Burger, a tie between Chick-fil-A and Culver’s for fourth, and Five Guys in fifth. Yet looking at those brands that rank first in foot traffic in at least one state, only Wendy’s is in the top five nationally for the most locations.

Regional Favorites Roundup

Southeast

Mirroring national trends, Wendy’s led in foot traffic in the Southeast, followed by McDonald’s, Raising Cane’s, Chick-fil-A, and then a tie between Five Guys and Culver’s. And once again, being ubiquitous doesn’t necessarily translate to popularity, with Subway, Burger King, Sonic, and Dairy Queen all appearing on the list for most common stores, yet absent from the top foot traffic rankings.

West

Perhaps unsurprisingly, regional favorite In-N-Out Burger secured a number-one ranking in five Western states for having the highest foot traffic—despite not cracking the top five for total number of stores in any state in the region. Taking a broader view of brands that achieved a top five ranking for foot traffic in at least one Western state, In-N-Out ties for fourth place with fellow burger joint Five Guys, with the top spots belonging to Wendy’s, Chick-fil-A, and Raising Cane’s.

Southwest

Maintaining its western dominance, In-N-Out also stood out as a beloved chain in the Southwest region. It once again achieved the most first-place rankings for foot traffic in a given state, taking the top honor in two of the four states in the region. Interestingly, the list of brands to make the top five for foot traffic in at least one state in the Southwest were: Wendy’s, Raising Cane’s, McDonald’s, Five Guys, In-n-Out, Culver’s, Chick-fil-A, and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers; yet of these, only Wendy’s and McDonald’s ever make the top five for total number of stores in at least one state.

Northeast

Five Guys, founded in Washington, D.C., and Jersey Mikes, native to the Jersey Shore, demonstrated a strong presence in the area close to their origins, ranking second and third in the region in terms of the number of times they crack the top five for total number of stores in a given state. When it comes to overall popularity, Wendy’s, Chick-fil-A, and Five Guys took the top three spots for stores most likely to rank in the top five for foot traffic. But Raising Cane’s emerged as perhaps the most well-loved restaurant, taking the top spot for foot traffic in a whopping six states in the Northeast.

Midwest

Wisconsin-born Culver’s excelled in its home region, showing up in the top five for both number of locations and foot traffic. It’s the second-most likely brand, behind Wendy’s, to be in the top five for foot traffic for states in the region, snagging the number one overall spot for popularity in one state (Ohio).

How Mobility Insights Can Drive Smarter Business Decisions

The fast-food study uncovered compelling patterns regarding consumer behavior that highlight what genuinely resonates with customers.

• The Scarcity Factor: Chains like Raising Cane’s and In-N-Out demonstrate how there’s not always a correlation between a restaurant’s footprint and popularity. Even with a smaller geographic footprint, these restaurants showcased high foot traffic, suggesting strong customer loyalty.
• The Power of Regional Loyalty: Local favorites took hold in their home regions. Culver’s, rooted in the Midwest, Five Guys, with origins in the Northeast, and In-n-Out in the West all indicate how regional ties help brands outperform more prominent competitors.
• Popularity Isn’t Always About Numbers: A larger presence doesn’t always translate to greater popularity. Consumers often prioritize regional connection and brand identity over convenience or location count.

dataplor’s mobility product offers actionable data for businesses across industries. This fast-food analysis revealed how businesses can use location intelligence to optimize marketing strategies with tailored campaigns for regional preferences, identify gaps in high-loyalty regions to explore new markets, and understand consumer behavior to inform store placement and product offerings.

Learn more about our mobility product and how your business could benefit from these insights in our mobility release announcement.

In today’s rapidly evolving business environment, understanding customer behavior and preferences is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. According to Forbes, 80% of all data contains a geospatial component, making location analytics and business intelligence crucial for businesses to gain insights into customer patterns.

Source: Forbes

Businesses are not only competing on the products and services they offer, but also on their ability to optimize customer experiences based on data-driven insights.

The rise of location analytics is transforming how you engage with your target markets, providing real-time insights into customer preferences, demographics, and spatial patterns.

Location analytics empowers you to uncover hidden trends using geospatial data and POI data, enabling data-driven decision-making. With dataplor’s comprehensive POI datasets, you can now dive deeper into market demographics, identify new opportunities, and gain actionable insights for planning marketing strategies, site selection, and resource allocation.

In this article, we’ll review how POI data and location analytics can unlock valuable insights into your target market. We’ll cover the key benefits of location-based data, steps to effectively leverage location intelligence, and real-world case studies showcasing its success.

What is Location Analytics?

It is the process of analyzing geospatial data to gain a deeper understanding of customer behavior, preferences, and patterns related to physical locations. By using location data combined with advanced GIS (Geographic Information System) technologies, you can gain valuable insights into how your target audience interacts with different geographical areas.

These analytics solutions can help you make informed decisions about where to expand, how to tailor your market strategies, and which locations offer the best opportunities for growth. Additionally, analytics platforms offer integrations with various business tools to streamline data-driven decision-making.

How It Works

Location analytics leverages Point-of-Interest (POI) data, which contains detailed information about specific places, such as retail stores, landmarks, and service providers. 

With POI data, you can uncover trends by analyzing the spatial relationships between locations, identifying high-potential areas for growth, and understanding the demographic makeup of different regions. This can help you optimize your marketing campaigns and strategically decide on site selection and resource allocation.

For example, spatial analytics and visualization tools can help you map out how different locations impact profitability, allowing you to make more data-driven decisions about your marketing strategies. Whether you’re identifying prime areas for new store locations or assessing proximity to competitors, location analytics provides the tools you’ll need to succeed in today’s competitive market.

Benefits of Location Analytics

Location analytics can offer a powerful set of tools to make strategic decisions. By analyzing geospatial data and leveraging location intelligence, you can improve operational efficiency. These functionalities can help you fine-tune your business intelligence and make informed decisions. 

Here are some key benefits:

1. Spot New Market Opportunities

Using spatial analysis tools, you can uncover high-potential target markets. By identifying new locations with the right geographical data, you can increase the chances of success for your business initiatives.

Boston Consulting Group reports that retail and e-commerce businesses reported an 11% to 15% increase in average online cart size by utilizing location intelligence to deliver more personalized and timely promotions. Additionally, these companies were able to reduce last-mile delivery costs by 3% to 4% through the use of geospatial data to optimize logistics and delivery routes.

2. Outpace Competitors

Location analytics provides insights into competitor locations and operations. By understanding the proximity of competitors and the surrounding locations, you can position yourself strategically and differentiate your offerings.

3. Make Smarter Decisions with Data

Location data forms the backbone of data-driven decision-making. Whether it’s optimizing site selection or effectively allocating resources, you can use location analytics to ensure that every move is backed by data, improving both operational efficiency and profitability.

Understanding Areas of Interest with POI Data

What is POI Data?

Point-of-Interest (POI) data is a comprehensive tool that includes detailed information about various physical locations such as restaurants, stores, landmarks, and more. Each POI represents a specific location that holds value to businesses or consumers.

By using data visualization tools and interactive analytics platforms, you can visualize segmentation of customer groups to make more data-driven decisions.

This data contains essential attributes such as geographical coordinates, demographic information, business hours, and categories (such as retail, healthcare, or entertainment).

POI data can help you empower your business in several impactful ways:

1. Identify Local Patterns

You can analyze POI data to detect trends in specific locations, such as retail centers or popular landmarks. These insights help you optimize your location strategy by understanding local market trends and consumer behavior.

2. Find High-Value Markets

Using location-based insights, you can identify areas with a high concentration of foot traffic. This allows you to focus your efforts on new locations that offer strong potential for growth and profitability.

3. Understand Competitor Landscape

By examining POI data, you can analyze competitor proximity and identify complementary businesses nearby. This insight helps craft strategies that differentiate your offerings and increase your competitiveness.

4. Uncover Hidden Customer Trends

With POI data, you can reveal hidden trends in customer preferences and behaviors across various regions. These insights let you tailor your marketing campaigns to specific customer needs, optimizing both engagement and success in key markets.

Putting Location Analytics into Action

By harnessing geospatial data and powerful location intelligence tools, you can make strategic decisions that drive growth and profitability. These functionalities are crucial for managing business data efficiently and improving overall business intelligence.

To unlock the potential of location analytics, follow these simple steps using POI data.

1. Define Your Audience and Focus Areas

Start by clearly defining your target audience and identifying areas of interest where they are most likely to be found. Understanding your customer’s demographic profile and geographic preferences allows you to focus on locations with the greatest potential.

2. Dive into POI Data

Access POI datasets to explore a wealth of location-based insights. These datasets provide valuable information about various locations, including restaurants, landmarks, and retail stores, helping you pinpoint critical opportunities.

3. Analyze Customer Behavior

Use location analytics tools to analyze customer behavior near POIs. By visualizing spatial relationships, you can detect trends, track patterns, and understand how your customers interact with certain areas to obtain detailed information for strategic planning.

4. Study Your Competitive Landscape

Analyze your competitor’s proximity and complementary businesses with POI data to craft a strategy that sets you apart. Knowing where your competitors are and who you can partner up with allows you to tailor your approach to maximize competitive advantage.

5. Make Smarter Business Decisions

Leverage the insights gained from POI data to make data-driven decisions for marketing campaigns, site selection, and resource allocation. This approach lets you optimize your operations, maximize profitability, and ensure you’re targeting the right customers in the right places.

Case Studies & Success Stories

dataplor’s POI data and location analytics have empowered various companies in different industries to achieve remarkable success. We’ll explore some use cases that illustrate how these organizations have leveraged our geospatial data to tackle challenges, implement effective solutions, and discover new growth opportunities.

1. FLO^®: Expanding EV Charging Coverage

FLO^®, a leading electric vehicle (EV) charging network across North America, faced challenges with outdated and inconsistent data, particularly in bilingual regions. 

By switching to dataplor’s POI data, FLO^® was able to increase its dataset by 65% in benchmark areas, which allowed them to identify previously overlooked opportunities. 

With dataplor’s accurate and regularly updated POI data, FLO^® was able to refine their machine-learning models to predict charger utilization, enhance their sales team’s ability to target potential hosts for charges, and strategically place EV chargers in high-demand areas. This led to a significant improvement in the accuracy of their predictions and increased growth across their network.

2. Wolt: Boosting Market Expansion

Wolt, a food delivery service operating in 27 countries, sought to enhance its market understanding and optimize its internal operations. 

By integrating dataplor’s POI data, they strengthened their selection insights and identified untapped merchant opportunities.

This resulted in a 40% market expansion in certain markets, surpassing their initial projections. Wolt also utilized dataplor’s POI data to streamline operations and improve their CRM systems, helping them allocate resources more effectively and grow their customer base.

3. Yeme Tech: Building Walkable Communities

Yeme Tech focused on community enhancement, faced challenges with unreliable and costly open-source data for its geospatial platform. 

By integrating dataplor’s POI data, they created a 15-minute walkable fulfillment benchmarking tool. This tool enabled them to provide valuable insights into walkability and sustainability in urban areas.
dataplor’s accurate and comprehensive POI data allowed Yeme Tech to make informed decisions, improve community engagement, and scale its platform globally with confidence.

Source: dataplor

Empower Your Business with dataplor’s POI Data

In today’s fast-paced business landscape, location analytics and POI data are crucial tools for understanding target markets and making informed decisions. By leveraging geospatial data and insights from dataplor’s POI data, you can identify high-potential areas, optimize your marketing strategies, and make data-driven choices for site selection and resource allocation.

Whether you’re looking to expand into new markets or gain a deeper understanding of your audience, location intelligence helps you to stay competitive and grow strategically.

Explore our comprehensive data solutions and discover how they can transform your business. By harnessing our rich datasets and location-based insights, you can make informed decisions that drive growth and profitability.