The last few years have seen a boom in the takeout category. Services like Uber Eats and DoorDash have generated a higher demand in this space, leaving many Quick Service Restaurant chains scrambling to adapt. While up to 50% of their daily revenue comes from meals eaten outside of their doors, many have only dedicated a very small amount of space and time towards takeout. Instead of simply reacting to this shift, Noodles World Kitchen is proactive and is aiming to become a leader in the quick pickup experience.

A key part of our process was taking a wholistic approach to research. Enhancing the in-store experience was only half the battle; we needed to consider the entire user journey rather than just looking at the 30 seconds spent inside of the store. We took our research beyond the store to consider the various types of users and their journeys — from the office manager ordering food for their team, to the suburban mom buying dinner for her family, to the college student grabbing a quick meal between lectures.

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Through our process we uncovered a number of opportunities which we translated into concepts and prototypes across the entire quick pickup experience. We initially focused on the in-store pickup touch-points, later extending into concepts for wayfinding, app features, information architecture, and the overall restaurant flow. We are looking forward to their launch in the upcoming year!

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