BROOMFIELD — Not content to rest on its laurels, hunkered down in the markets where Noodles & Co. (Nasdaq: NDLS) already has market saturation, the Broomfield-based fast-casual chain launched this week an initiative to recruit multi-unit franchise operators in the American South and Southwest. 

Of Noodles’ more than 450 restaurants, 85% are company-owned and operated and highly concentrated in the firm’s mature markets such as the Boulder Valley and Northern Colorado, Noodles’ new vice president of franchise sales John Ramsey told BizWest this month. 

“There are a whole bunch of markets where we have no presence whatsoever, so the opportunity for growth is very high,” he said, 

Specifically, Noodles said it is targeting markets in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, South Carolina and Texas.

In a nod to the potentially long-lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said new franchise locations would be “off-premise oriented,” meaning they’d cater to take-out diners. 

Ramsey touted certain inherent features of Noodles’ menu — the portability of pasta, for example — and innovations such as new packaging and a mobile app as reasons why the company has seen success during the pandemic. 

“Further differentiating the Noodles franchise opportunity is our successful model for off-premise dining, distinctive store designs featuring smaller footprint units, pickup windows for digital orders where feasible, more efficient value-engineered equipment packages and streamlined operational procedures,” he said in a prepared statement. “The brand has successfully demonstrated its ability to adapt and is perfectly suited for today’s consumer environment.”

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