Free food, not gym memberships, motivates frontline workers, USF study reveals

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Key takeaways:

• Food and connection matter most: Free meals and social events motivated frontline workers more than gym memberships or flu shots.
• Better perks, better sales: Valued employees delivered stronger service, boosting sales.
• Global, consistent results: Findings from five studies, including a European supermarket chain, showed the same effect across settings.

TAMPA, Fla. (Sept. 24, 2025) – When it comes to motivating employees, new research from the University of South Florida finds frontline workers, such as cashiers and retail clerks, value perks like food and outings far more than health benefits or gym memberships.

Co-authored by Dipayan Biswas, the USF Frank Harvey endowed professor of marketing in the Muma College of Business, the study examined five categories of company-sponsored wellness benefits — food, social, mindfulness, physical and health — to see which resonated most with customer-facing employees.

Turns out, free meals and events like happy hours or company picnics go a long way in inspiring workers to deliver better service.

Published in the Journal of Marketing Research, the study found food and social programs helped employees feel more valued and develop a greater sense of loyalty to their employers. Those workers were more likely to care about their company’s well-being and repay the investment with stronger performance, service quality and customer assistance. Better service, in turn, translated into higher sales.

“The recommendations for any business, small or large, is when you’re having these wellness programs, the ones that foster nourishment and connection have stronger downstream effects on customer-related positive effect,” Biswas said.

The research showed food had the biggest impact, followed by social gatherings. Mindfulness activities, such as a meditation room, also helped, while physical and health perks like gym memberships or flu-shot drives had the least effect.

The findings draw on five studies, including a sales study at a large European supermarket chain that showed wellness benefits tied to food, social interaction and mindfulness boosted annual sales.

Biswas said the idea grew out of the rising popularity of wellness programs. More than 90% of companies worldwide now offer them, with global spending projected to top $90 billion a year.

The results come from a range of approaches, including a pilot study, sales study, field studies and a meta-analysis.

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About the University of South Florida

The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and USF Health. USF is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a top 50 public university and the best value in Florida.  U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine as the No. 1 medical school in Florida and in the highest tier nationwide. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $738 million in research funding in 2024 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion.  USF’s Division I athletics teams compete in the American Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu.