Start a Noodles & Company Franchise in 2024

Franchise 500 Rank: N/R Not ranked last year

Initial investment: $747K - $1.4M

Units as of 2023: 461 1.5% over 3 years

Noodles & Company is a fast-casual American restaurant that serves international and American noodle dishes, as well as soups and salads. Noodles & Company also sells baguettes, desserts, and customizable kids' meals. Many meals also come with gluten-free and vegan options.

Noodles & Company was founded in 1995 by Aaron Kennedy in Broomfield, Colorado. After noticing a lack of restaurants that served noodles, Kennedy started developing recipes out of his mother-in-law's kitchen.

Since beginning to franchise in 2003, Noodles & Company has since grown to include more than 400 locations throughout the United States.

Why You May Want To Start a Noodles & Company Franchise

If you enjoy good food and want to continue the long history of families gathering around a plate of noodles while introducing new flavors to your community, opening a Noodles & Company could be an excellent opportunity for you. Franchisees should have a good work ethic, determination, and a love of new opportunities. Having restaurant experience is not necessary, but some business experience can be highly beneficial.

Each Noodles & Company franchise is expected to feature a unique concept and family-friendly flavors. Noodles & Company brings together flavors from all over the world and develops bold new ones.

What Might Make a Noodles & Company Franchise a Good Choice?

Noodles & Company is looking for multi-unit franchisees interested in growing with a unique fast-casual concept. They strive to be a value-driven brand with a reputation for inclusivity and collaboration. The Noodles & Company leadership may consist of franchising veterans with a proven track record of growing national and international brands.

Noodles & Company believes in using technology and the right tools to make your life easier. With advanced scheduling technology, you may reduce labor, boost sales with the app, track metrics with an integrated POS, and eliminate paper trails with iPads.

To be part of the Noodles & Company team, you should make sure you're financially ready for an initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. In addition, you should prepare yourself for ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty, and potential renewal fees. Franchisees will also need to meet the company's set net worth and liquid capital requirements.

How To Open a Noodles & Company Franchise

If awarded a franchise, franchisees receive a great deal of support from the Noodles & Company brand throughout the franchising process. In addition to pre-opening training, Noodles & Company franchisees receive support through brand awareness, marketing, research, and construction. Franchisees may also receive hands-on training and continued support after their franchise location has opened.

Your general manager will undergo multiple weeks of training at a Noodles & Company restaurant to ensure they're ready to lead your team. Noodles & Company will send experienced trainers to the first two locations each franchisee opens to help onboard their new hires for several weeks.

Before making any financial commitment or signing an agreement with Noodles & Company, you must perform your due diligence and establish if this is the right opportunity for you. As part of your due diligence, you may want to speak to existing Noodles & Company franchisees and ask the franchising team questions.

Company Overview

About Noodles & Company

Industry	Food
Related Categories	Miscellaneous Quick-Service Restaurants, Asian Food, Italian Food
Founded	1995
Leadership	John Ramsay, VP Franchise Sales
Corporate Address	520 Zang St., #D Broomfield, CO 80021
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok

Business Overview

Franchising Since	2003 (21 years)
# of employees at HQ	150
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises in the following US states: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming
# of Units	461 (as of 2023)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Noodles & Company franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$35,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$747,000 - $1,423,000
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	5%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	1.25%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	20 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	300-450 hours
Classroom Training	32-48 hours
Ongoing Support	Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Lease Negotiation Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	Yes
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
# of employees required to run	20
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	No