Article
How WOW knew it was time for a rebrand
Founder Paul Ballard discusses how new decor and a name change were only a couple of aspects of WOW's new identity.
June 6, 2013 by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com
Editor's note: This is just one story in a recurring series that features interviews with top-level execs in the fast casual industry. If you would like us to feature a specific exec, please make your request in an email to Cherryh Butler at cherryhb@fastcasual.com.
WOW Café: American Grill & Wingery, a fast casual concept based in New Orleans, is launching a rebrand in hopes of serving several niche markets, including colleges, airports and hotels, but isn't forgetting about stand-alone units. FastCasual.com chatted with Paul Ballard, founder of WOW and owner of Ballard Brands, which operates the 70-unit chain, about why he thinks it's time to revitalize WOW.
Q: Why did you decide it was time to not only rebrand but also rename?
Ballard: WOW has always been a part of our name and it always will be – we're just tweaking it a bit! However, after nearly 12 years in business, and as we've evolved our menu, we need to explicitly state what we are: an American Grill. We're not just a "World of Wings" at WOW Café, which is how many customers perceive us. While we still serve wings with flavors from around the world, we're so much more than that.
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| Paul, Steve and Scott Ballard own WOW Café: American Grill & Wingery. |
Q: I'm sure there is a fine line between knowing when it's time to change the name; what is your advice to other restaurants facing a similar decision?
Ballard: It's always been in the back of our minds since the beginning of changing our name. Our tagline years ago was, "We're not just winging it" and as we've been continually expanding the menu over the years, adding healthier options and other dishes and catering to various customers, the timing just seemed right. Look at Wendy's - they're simply Wendy's now. Not Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers because they're not just about hamburgers. In life, everybody evolves and changes, and the same goes with a brand. Eventually, we'd like customers to know us simply as WOW, embodying a brand and a culture.
Q: What was involved in the rebranding and name change process? For example, did you have focus groups, poll customers, etc.?
Ballard: We first started thinking about our brand and what we truly were. We kept running into the problem of having to explain ourselves a lot. We had a hard time because while we have variety, our name was associated with one thing – wings. We had a conflict with this pretty early on and we wanted to be truthful in what we really were and are now. So we looked at big brands to see a pattern in logo evolution. We went through exercises, brainstorming and bouncing ideas around about what names were important to keep. What words worked. Then it just came to us: WOW Café: American Grill & Wingery. From there, we changed our logo – making it less busy, taking colors out, and using an Americana font in the word "Café."
Then we enlisted the help of our PR and branding agency to dive deeper into our brand. They did extensive research and surveyed customers and the data was used to help us further develop the brand beyond our visual identity.
We want to build a timeless place that is a neighborhood American grill. We're working on changing our trade dress to reflect décor that caters to a group or family that is looking for good food. We want to be New Orleans without being cliché or a theme, so we're changing smaller elements like lighting and textures, using wood and slab floor tile. We're also adding those finishing touches like New Orleans-style artwork capturing flavors of the city, but also tailoring our establishments to the markets in which they operate.
We're even drilling down to the uniforms, using brands like American Apparel that are made in the U.S.A. We're trying to stay true and genuine to our brand as an American Grill.
Q: What are your growth plans for this year and over the next couple years?
Ballard: We are on our way to opening at least 20 more WOW locations this year. We're focusing on non-traditional growth like universities, airports, military bases, and hotels, but also working with the right developers on our traditional models to develop more corporate-owned stores.
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