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Noodles & Company is a 27-year old fast-casual restaurant chain that as a brand, is quite sure of itself and what makes it different, and is showing that off in a new campaign and a brand refresh.

It’s also why as Noodles, as a business, would say that despite many industry challenges, there’s still a big opportunity grow, according to Stacey Pool, chief marketing officer, speaking on the Marketer’s Brief podcast, Ad Age’s weekly discussion of marketing news and strategy.

Noodles’ latest campaign, which launched in May, is known as “Uncommonly Good,” and highlights the chain’s approach to things like service, its menu, and its loyalty program, that in Pool’s estimation, help to make those things “uncommon” when viewing Noodles against competitors. “Good” references how all of those things, themselves and together, then make up a differentiated “guest experience,” said Pool. New ads tell that story in several different ways through a character called “Noodles Biggest Fan” who himself, is a little “uncommon” as brand spokesmen go.

The campaign comes from the independent agency Fortnight Collective, which describes itself as a brand marketing accelerator; and like Noodles, is based in Colorado. Fortnight has been the brand's agency of record since 2020. 

Noodles operates about 450 restaurants—most of them are company owned—that Pool said provide consumers with variety from a common thread: global cuisines for which noodles or pasta is a staple. That by the way, Pool noted, does not mean "carbs, only the different ways they are consumed across the globe," and that too is something of the "Goodness" the new ad campaign and brand refresh seeks to emphasize for consumers.

For example, one way “Noodles Biggest Fan” is being used is to garner attention for trend-right new offerings like what Noodles calls “Leanguini,” a low-carb, high-protein pasta. Plant-based noodles dishes are also featured on the menu. (The chain is also considering a plant-based protein to pair with noodles with, CEO Dave Boennighausen separately said earlier this year).

Noodles’ sales in fiscal 2021 totaled about $475 million, and the company is expected to report second-quarter earnings today. First quarter results were mixed--“mostly solid albeit some volatility,” according to Andy Barish, an analyst following the company in note to clients last month. Barish also then said he had a “Buy” on the stock, related primarily to its potential to grow through new units.

Noodles like many pers in the fast-casual field, is still dealing with the aftereffects of COVID disruption including now, rapid price inflation, Pool said. One way Noodles is meeting that last challenge is by calling attention to value offerings like a “7 Delicious $7 Dishes” menu, that launched only last week.

Coming along with the new ads is a “refresh” in stores and advertising, inckuding fonts and pphotography that modernize the look and feel and better highlight Noodles differences, Pool said.

Jon Springer is a Senior Reporter for Ad Age, covering food and CPG marketing. He formerly covered the food retail industry for Winsight and Supermarket News, and is a former sports and features writer for The Cecil Whig, a daily newspaper in Elkton, Md.