3 ways Noodles & Co ignited franchise growth during COVID-19

By John Ramsay, Vice President of Franchise Sales

COVID-19 left businesses across all industries disrupted and challenged to adapt and pivot. While many restaurants were left to hit the brakes, I saw an opportunity to grow and further develop the franchise development at an exciting restaurant concept.
Noodles & Company was well-positioned for franchise growth, and despite the economically challenging environment, I joined Noodles & Company in November 2020 to lead the Colorado-based restaurant chain's franchise development charge.

In 2021, we first announced our multi-unit franchise growth initiative and have since increased our new development commitments with secured agreements from both current and new franchisees. Today, we have over 450 combined corporate and franchise locations across 33 states serving guests Uncommon Goodness and globally inspired noodle bowls, best-in-class service, and values-centric culture.

While there are many challenges for franchisors when it comes to franchise development, the key to greater performance and overall success of the brand is building a strong franchise system that recruits and supports franchisees through all stages of restaurant development, and long after the doors to their first restaurant have opened. In my nearly 30 years of restaurant and franchise development experience, I've recognized three keys to success when it comes to operating a prosperous franchise business.

1. Building a franchisee-franchisor relationship
Noodles & Company is always working to be the best franchise partner possible to its franchisees and the secret I've found to building a successful franchisor-franchisee relationship is trust. Our culture fosters trust as shown in our values: care, love, pride, and passion. In addition to being an ongoing resource to the franchisee, Noodles & Company has team members from the franchise development department as well as the C-level executives reaching out to build rapport and listen to their concerns as true partners of the business. After all, the franchise business is the people business

2. Producing long-term sustainable profits and strong unit-level economics
A franchisor's value proposition is the future growth, scalability, and sustainability of the business model. When franchisees are evaluating brands to invest in, one of the most crucial metrics to weigh is unit economics. To attract the ideal franchisee, Noodles & Company positions its brand to drive strong unit level economics with three key components: sales, profitability, and investment.

With a streamlined business model, we drive sales through a winning menu strategy, marketing and guest experience. The company maximizes profitability through innovation that lowers food costs without sacrificing quality or value and reduces labor by improving kitchen efficiency without the expense of the guest experience. Lower investments such as a smaller footprint, efficient kitchen design, and national purchasing programs also help improve operation and team efficiency while producing long-term sustainable profits.

Additionally, we leverage digital marketing with loyalty programs and other digital assets to drive guest traffic. With over 4.4 million users in our loyalty program, we analyze the first-party data collected and make strategic business decisions that help franchise operators to understand what guests want, improve guest satisfaction, and deliver a seamless and convenient experience across all locations.

3. Finding the development strategy for your brand
Franchise development strategies and initiatives can vary for each brand depending on variables including ideal franchisee profile, target growth markets and support systems. A multi-unit growth strategy for one brand may not work for another, and for Noodles & Company that's no different.

Noodles & Company is an established fast-casual restaurant chain with a proven business model and a loyal customer base. Even with corporate-owned locations and a stable network of franchisees within designated markets across the country, Noodles & Company was primed for aggressive franchise expansion. To target large, high-growth areas of the country without a Noodles restaurant, we created a franchise system that supports new market development and offer exclusive development territories to new franchisees.

In the end, franchisors and franchisees both share a common goal to operate a successful business. As brands focus on development growth, regardless of the economic environment, it's our responsibility to show the strength of our concept, why it's worth investing in, and provide operators as much support as possible to achieve business success. The key is developing a franchise system that provides strong unit-level economics, builds trust between partners, and supports the franchisee's business goals. Ultimately, by having a clear vision and goals, you can attract the ideal franchisee who is aligned with your vision, and together you can achieve mutual goals.