Noodles & Co (NDLS) 2025 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to today's Noodles & Company's first quarter 2025 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this call is being recorded.

下午好，歡迎參加今天的 Noodles & Company 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）提醒一下，此通話正在被錄音。

I would now like to introduce Noodles & Company's Chief Financial Officer, Mike Hynes.

現在我想介紹 Noodles & Company 的財務長 Mike Hynes。

Thank you and good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to our first quarter 2025 earnings call. Here with me this afternoon is Drew Madsen, our Chief Executive Officer.

謝謝大家，下午好。歡迎參加我們的 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。今天下午和我一起在場的是我們的執行長德魯·馬德森 (Drew Madsen)。

I'd like to start by going over a few regulatory matters. During the call, we may make forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of the company. Any such items should be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act.

我想先討論一些監管問題。在通話過程中，我們可能會對未來事件或公司未來財務表現做出前瞻性陳述。任何此類項目都應被視為《私人證券訴訟改革法案》所定義的前瞻性陳述。

Such statements are only projections, and actual events or results could differ from those projections due to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those referred to in this afternoon's news release and the cautionary statement in the company's annual report on Form 10-K, and subsequent filings with the SEC.

此類聲明僅是預測，實際事件或結果可能由於多種風險和不確定因素而與這些預測不同，包括今天下午的新聞稿和公司 10-K 表年度報告中的警示聲明以及隨後向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中提到的風險和不確定因素。

During the call, we will discuss non-GAAP measures, which we believe can be useful in evaluating the company's operating performance. These measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for our financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP.

在電話會議中，我們將討論非公認會計準則指標，我們認為這些指標有助於評估公司的營運表現。這些措施不應被孤立地考慮或取代我們根據 GAAP 編制的財務結果。

A reconciliation of these measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures is available in our first quarter 2025 earnings release. To the extent that the company provides guidance, it does so only on a non-GAAP basis and does not provide reconciliations of forward-looking non-GAAP measures. Quantitative reconciling information for these measures is unavailable without unreasonable efforts.

我們在 2025 年第一季的財報中提供了這些指標與最直接可比較的 GAAP 指標的對帳。在公司提供指導的範圍內，它僅以非 GAAP 為基礎，並且不提供前瞻性非 GAAP 指標的對帳。如果不付出不合理的努力，就無法獲得這些措施的定量協調資訊。

With that, I would like to turn the call over to Drew Madsen, our Chief Executive Officer.

說到這裡，我想把電話轉給我們的執行長德魯·馬德森 (Drew Madsen)。

Thank you, Mike, and good afternoon, everyone. We are very pleased with the positive Q1 same-store sales performance we achieved, despite the challenging macroeconomic environment. During the first quarter, traffic increased 1.8% and check increased 2.9%, resulting in the same-store sales increase of 4.7% in our company-owned restaurants and 4.4% system-wide including franchisees.

謝謝你，麥克，大家下午好。儘管宏觀經濟環境充滿挑戰，但我們對第一季同店銷售業績的正面表現感到非常滿意。第一季度，客流量成長了 1.8%，帳單成長了 2.9%，導致我們公司自有餐廳的同店銷售額成長了 4.7%，包括特許經營店在內的全系統同店銷售額成長了 4.4%。

While the Q1 increase was helped by the introduction of three new menu items in October of last year as well as favorable Easter timing, it was also due to the comprehensive menu rollout in mid-March of this year, including the impact of increased marketing and increased brand awareness. We are also pleased this Q1 momentum continued in April, which is our most difficult monthly comparison versus last year.

雖然第一季的成長得益於去年 10 月推出的三種新菜單以及有利的復活節時機，但這也歸功於今年 3 月中旬全面推出的菜單，包括增加行銷和提高品牌知名度的影響。我們也很高興看到第一季的動能在四月得以延續，這是與去年相比最困難的一個月度比較。

Same-store sales, since the mid-March rollout through April, have increased approximately 5%. Both Q1 and April results represent a significant acceleration from Q4 last year when traffic was down minus 0.1% and same-store sales grew 0.5%. This sustained and significant improvement in our sales trends demonstrates to us that the execution of our previously announced strategic priorities have gained traction, especially while coming during the period when the industry has been impacted by lower consumer sentiment.

自 3 月中旬推出以來至 4 月，同店銷售額成長了約 5%。第一季和四月的業績均較去年第四季有顯著加速，當時客流量下降 0.1%，同店銷售額成長 0.5%。我們的銷售趨勢持續顯著改善，這表明我們先前宣布的策略重點的執行已經取得了進展，尤其是在產業受到消費者信心低迷影響的時期。

Let me highlight several of the key dynamics driving or improving Q1 sales results. Creating a foundation of operations excellence remains our top priority. Our primary operations focus during Q1 was ensuring that we were prepared to introduce our new menu with excellence on March 12. To do this, we instituted a comprehensive four-week training program starting at the regional director level that cascaded down to all hourly team member roles.

讓我重點介紹一下推動或改善第一季銷售業績的幾個關鍵動力。創建卓越營運的基礎仍然是我們的首要任務。我們第一季的主要營運重點是確保我們準備好在 3 月 12 日推出優質的新菜單。為了實現這一目標，我們制定了一項為期四週的綜合培訓計劃，從區域主管級別開始，逐步擴展到所有小時工團隊成員。

New training modules were created for every position, focused on increased menu knowledge and suggestive selling for our guest-facing team members, along with step-by-step preparation instructions for each new dish for culinary team members. We also significantly increased the time for hands-on practice preparation of all new dishes for culinary team members to ensure they were well prepared to consistently follow the recipe and execute to our standards.

我們為每個職位創建了新的培訓模組，重點是增加面向客人的團隊成員的菜單知識和暗示性銷售，同時為烹飪團隊成員提供每道新菜的分步準備說明。我們還大大增加了烹飪團隊成員親自動手練習準備所有新菜餚的時間，以確保他們做好充分準備，始終如一地遵循食譜並達到我們的標準。

We achieved a 95% training module completion rate, and then certified restaurant readiness for the new menu launch through area manager certification visits. The new menu training culminated with the [hype] video and restaurant team meetings to create energy and excitement around the menu rollout. This was a significant one-time training investment to set our teams up for success and help ensure we were ready to delight guests once the new menu launched on March 12.

我們實現了 95% 的培訓模組完成率，並透過區域經理認證訪問認證餐廳已準備好推出新菜單。新菜單培訓以[宣傳]影片和餐廳團隊會議結束，為菜單的推出創造了活力和興奮。這是一項重大的一次性培訓投資，旨在為我們的團隊取得成功做好準備，並幫助確保我們在 3 月 12 日新菜單推出後能夠為客人帶來愉悅。

Our second priority is to stimulate new guests' desire for noodles through a combination of compelling, limited time offers and a comprehensive menu transformation. Regarding limited time offers, we brought Steak Stroganoff back in mid-January, and it performed consistently well for two months leading up to our new menu introduction. We believe this dish will continue to be a strong, seasonally appropriate Q1 LTO in future years.

我們的第二個重點是透過引人注目的限時優惠和全面的菜單改造來激發新客人對麵條的渴望。關於限時優惠，我們在一月中旬重新推出了牛排斯特羅加諾夫，在我們推出新菜單之前的兩個月裡，它的銷量一直很好。我們相信，在未來幾年中，該菜餚將繼續成為強勁的、適合季節的 Q1 LTO。

But the really big news is our fully reimagined new menu. As you may recall, our menu transformation began last October with the introduction of three new dishes: Lemon Garlic Shrimp Scampi, Crispy Chicken Bacon Alfredo, and Chipotle Chicken Cavatappi.

但真正的重大新聞是我們完全重新設計的新菜單。您可能還記得，我們​​的菜單變革始於去年 10 月，當時推出了三道新菜：檸檬蒜蓉蝦仁、脆皮雞肉培根阿爾弗雷多和 Chipotle 雞肉卡瓦塔皮。

On March 12, we added five new dishes and four reimagined recipes for popular favorites currently on the menu. The five new dishes include Pulled Pork Barbeque Mac & Cheese, Garlic Bacon Crunch Mac & Cheese, Buffalo Chicken Ranch Mac & Cheese, Cajun Shrimp Fettuccine, and Green Goddess Chicken Cobb Salad. Before reimagined fan favorites include Basil Pesto Cavatappi, Rigatoni Rosa, Creamy Cheddar Mac & Chees,e and Chicken Caesar Salad. In total, nearly two-thirds of our menu is new or improved. We believe this is the most comprehensive menu transformation in our nearly 30-year history.

3 月 12 日，我們為菜單上現有的熱門菜餚添加了五道新菜餚和四道重新設計的食譜。五道新菜色包括：手撕豬肉燒烤起司通心粉、蒜香培根脆起司通心粉、水牛城雞肉牧場起司通心粉、卡真蝦仁寬麵和綠女神雞肉科布沙拉。之前備受粉絲喜愛的菜色包括：羅勒香蒜醬卡瓦塔比通心粉、玫瑰通心粉、奶油切達起司通心粉和雞肉凱薩沙拉。總體而言，我們菜單中近三分之二的菜色都是新的或改進的。我們相信這是我們近30年歷史上最全面的菜單變革。

In addition to these new and improved dishes, we have also replaced the black plastic takeout packaging we have used for in-restaurant dining since COVID with new white ceramic tableware. And we have updated our digital menu boards with a cleaner, more contemporary design that highlights rotating video vignettes of our new and improved dishes. We are certainly excited about the guest response to our new menu after seven weeks, including sales of our new mac & cheese dishes, which have significantly exceeded expectations.

除了這些全新改良的餐具外，我們還用新的白色陶瓷餐具取代了自新冠疫情以來在餐廳用餐時使用的黑色塑膠外帶包裝。我們更新了數位菜單板，使其設計更加簡潔、更具現代感，並輪播著我們全新改良菜餚的視訊短片。七週後，顧客們對新菜單的反應非常熱烈，我們對此感到非常興奮，尤其是新款起司通心粉的銷售量，遠超預期。

Our third priority is to increase brand relevance and create new menu excitement through a redefined brand positioning and new activation strategies. We have a long brand history and have built competitive levels of brand awareness, but this has not previously translated into competitive levels of sales. We saw the need to increase brand relevance. We need to give current and potential new customers a reason to relate to us. We need to tell them why Noodles & Company is the best choice to satisfy their comfort food cravings.

我們的第三個優先事項是透過重新定義的品牌定位和新的激活策略來提高品牌相關性並創造新的菜單熱情。我們擁有悠久的品牌歷史，並建立了具有競爭力的品牌知名度，但這並沒有轉化為具有競爭力的銷售水平。我們看到了提高品牌相關性的必要性。我們需要為現有客戶和潛在的新客戶提供與我們建立聯繫的理由。我們需要告訴他們為什麼 Noodles & Company 是滿足他們對舒適食品渴望的最佳選擇。

We've been perfecting the art of noodles for 30 years. And to our knowledge, we are the only chain of scale to offer a menu devoted entirely to noodles, expertly crafted to satisfy a broad variety of comfort food cravings. We needed to do a better job of telling that story.

30 年來，我們一直致力於完善麵條製作藝術。據我們所知，我們是唯一一家提供純麵條菜單的連鎖店，精心製作的麵條可以滿足各種舒適食品的需求。我們需要更好地講述這個故事。

The name of our new campaign is We Know Noodles. And to more effectively tell our story, we created two new commercials. One that focuses on the enduring love consumers of all ages have for noodles and lets them know we have a big new menu they'll be excited to try. And the second commercial that focuses specifically on our new Mac & Cheese dishes and how we do Mac & Cheese better than anyone else.

我們的新活動名稱是「我們了解麵條」。為了更有效地講述我們的故事，我們製作了兩個新的廣告。我們專注於各個年齡層的消費者對麵條的持久熱愛，並讓他們知道我們有一個他們會很高興嘗試的全新菜單。第二個廣告特別關注我們的新 Mac & Cheese 菜餚以及我們如何比其他任何人都更好地製作 Mac & Cheese。

We confirmed through a commercial testing with the Kantar agency that our new commercials scored in the top quartile of all competitive commercials tested and showed a high likelihood to drive both brand perception and traffic. Then, we significantly increased our paid media and invested in new awareness driving channels, including digital out of home, digital audio, and additional social channels like Pinterest.

我們透過與 Kantar 代理商進行的商業測試確認，我們的新廣告在所有受測的競爭性廣告中得分最高，並且極有可能提升品牌認知度和流量。然後，我們大幅增加了付費媒體，並投資了新的知名度提升管道，包括數位戶外、數位音訊和 Pinterest 等其他社交管道。

We also leveraged PR and influencer campaigns to get the news out and leaned into our loyalty program through offers, personalized communications and our recent taste tour promotion to drive trial among our existing users. The results across a variety of key success measures since our March 12 brand relaunch have been very exciting. Let me walk you through some of the highlights.

我們也利用公關和影響力人士的宣傳活動來傳播新消息，並透過優惠活動、個人化溝通以及近期的試吃之旅等方式，強化我們的忠誠度計劃，以推動現有用戶的試用。自3月12日品牌重塑以來，各項關鍵指標的成果都令人振奮。讓我來為您介紹一些亮點。

Our early-stage brand launch PR garnered 450 million impressions, with over 95% being single brand stories devoted entirely to Noodles & Company. Since the menu launch and through April, we have seen double-digit increases in brand awareness, brand search traffi,c and app sessions in our own platforms for both new users and existing customers. We have definitely created more interest in our brand.

我們早期的品牌發佈公關活動獲得了4.5億次曝光，其中超過95%是專門針對Noodles & Company的單一品牌故事。自從菜單發布以來，截至4月份，我們平台的新用戶和老用戶，無論是品牌知名度、品牌搜尋流量還是應用程式會話量，都實現了兩位數的成長。我們的品牌確實引起了更多人的興趣。

We've outperformed our digital media channel KPIs, such as video completion rates, telling us consumers are positively engaging with our new message. Compared to the pre-launch period, we've seen a significant increase in loyalty sign-ups and loyalty transactions as well.

我們超額完成了數位媒體管道的各項關鍵績效指標，例如影片觀看完成率，這表明消費者對我們的新資訊積極參與。與上線前相比，我們的會員註冊量和會員交易量也顯著增加。

And finally, between April 12 and April 25, loyalty members had the opportunity to taste their way through our new menu with 14 days of exclusive offers. Transactions from this taste tour promotion more than doubled our expectations.

最後，4 月 12 日至 4 月 25 日期間，忠誠會員有機會透過 14 天的獨家優惠品嚐我們的新菜單。這次美食之旅的成交額超出了我們的預期兩倍多。

Also notable is the improvement in traffic through our in-store and owned first-party digital channels since our March 12 brand relaunch. We attribute this at least in part to additional investment in broader reach media assets that have helped increase awareness and attract lapsed and new users. Third party traffic has remained strong.

同樣值得注意的是，自 3 月 12 日品牌重新推出以來，我們店內和自有第一方數位管道的流量有所改善。我們認為這至少部分歸功於對覆蓋範圍更廣的媒體資產的額外投資，這些投資有助於提高知名度並吸引流失用戶和新用戶。第三方流量依然強勁。

Most importantly, the combined impact of our new menu, new brand positioning, new activation strategies, and increased marketing investment is readily apparent in our strong sales trends that I shared earlier. There is no question we will continue to learn, to innovate and improve going forward. But there's also no question that our business foundation has improved dramatically in the last few months.

最重要的是，我們的新菜單、新品牌定位、新激活策略和增加的營銷投資的綜合影響在我們之前分享的強勁銷售趨勢中顯而易見。毫無疑問，我們將繼續學習、創新和進步。但毫無疑問的是，我們的業務基礎在過去幾個月有了顯著改善。

Combined with a strategic reduction in capital spending and continued emphasis on smart cost savings, we are well positioned to strengthen our balance sheet this year as well. Overall, we are confident in the foundation we have put in place and excited by our sales momentum to start 2025.

結合策略性地減少資本支出和繼續強調智慧成本節約，我們今年也完全有能力加強我們的資產負債表。整體而言，我們對已經打下的基礎充滿信心，並對 2025 年開始的銷售動能感到興奮。

With that, I'll turn it over to Mike to review our first quarter financial highlights and full year guidance.

接下來，我將把時間交給麥克來回顧我們第一季的財務亮點和全年指引。

Thank you, Drew. In the first quarter, our total revenue increased 2% compared to last year to $123.8 million. System-wide comp restaurant sales during the first quarter increased 4.4%, including an increase of 4.7% at company-owned restaurants and an increase of 2.9% at franchise restaurants. Company comp traffic during the first quarter increased 1.8%. And average check increased 2.9%, inclusive of 1.3% effective pricing during the quarter. Company average unit volumes in the first quarter were $1.31 million.

謝謝你，德魯。第一季度，我們的總營收比去年同期成長了 2%，達到 1.238 億美元。全系統第一季同店餐廳銷售額成長4.4%，其中公司自營餐廳成長4.7%，特許經營餐廳成長2.9%。第一季公司同店客流量成長1.8%。平均支票金額增加了 2.9%，其中包括本季 1.3% 的有效定價。該公司第一季平均單位銷售量為 131 萬美元。

We experienced a shift in the Easter holiday from the first quarter in 2024 to the second quarter in 2025. We estimate that the Easter holiday shift benefited our first quarter comp sales by approximately 50 basis points, with the corresponding headwind in our second quarter.

我們經歷了復活節假期從 2024 年第一季到 2025 年第二季的轉變。我們估計，復活節假期的變化使我們第一季的銷售額成長了約 50 個基點，但第二季卻遭遇了相應的阻力。

As Drew mentioned, we are encouraged by the continued strength in our recent sales trends. Our comp restaurant sales post-March menu launch were up approximately 5% through April, despite April being our most difficult 2024 comparison.

正如德魯所提到的，近期銷售趨勢的持續強勁令我們感到鼓舞。儘管 4 月份是 2024 年最困難的比較期，但我們 3 月份菜單推出後，到 4 月份，我們的同店餐廳銷售額仍增長了約 5%。

Turning to our profitability, our COGS in the first quarter were 26.6% of sales, a 160 basis points increase from last year, which was primarily driven by higher food costs associated with our new menu offerings, which have been added since the first quarter of 2024. Our food inflation in the first quarter was approximately 2%.

談到我們的獲利能力，第一季我們的銷貨成本佔銷售額的 26.6%，比去年增加了 160 個基點，這主要是由於自 2024 年第一季以來增加的新菜單產品相關的食品成本增加所致。我們第一季的食品通膨率約為2%。

Labor costs for the first quarter were 32.5% of sales, which was up 20 basis points to the prior year, primarily due to wage inflation and one-time training expenses for the new menu rollout, partially offset by sales leverage. Hourly wage inflation in the first quarter was 2.7%. Occupancy costs in the first quarter were $11.5 million compared to $11.8 million in 2024 due to a reduction in our company-owned restaurant account over the last 12 months.

第一季的勞動成本佔銷售額的 32.5%，比去年增加了 20 個基點，主要原因是薪資上漲和新菜單推出的一次性培訓費用，但卻被銷售槓桿部分抵銷。第一季每小時工資通膨率為2.7%。第一季的入住成本為 1,150 萬美元，而 2024 年為 1,180 萬美元，原因是過去 12 個月我們公司自有餐廳帳戶減少。

Other restaurant operating costs increased 140 basis points in the first quarter to 21.1%. The increase in other restaurant operating costs was primarily driven by a combination of higher third-party delivery fees from higher third-party delivery channel sales and higher marketing expenses related to our new menu rollout.

其他餐廳營運成本在第一季增加了140個基點，達到21.1%。其他餐廳營運成本的增加主要是由於第三方配送通路銷售額增加導致的第三方配送費用增加以及新菜單推出相關的行銷費用增加。

Our restaurant level contribution margin was 10.3%, down from 13.1% in the first quarter of 2024 and a seasonally low first quarter. G&A for the first quarter was $12.8 million compared to $13 million in 2024, primarily due to decreases in salary and incentive compensation, partially offset by increased spend related to our new menu rollout.

我們餐廳層級的貢獻利潤率為10.3%，低於2024年第一季的13.1%，且為季節性低點。第一季度的一般及行政費用（G&A）為1,280萬美元，而2024年同期為1,300萬美元，這主要是由於工資和激勵性薪酬的減少，但新菜單推出相關的支出增加部分抵消了這一影響。

Net loss for the first quarter was $9.1 million or a loss of $0.20 per diluted share compared to a net loss of $6.1 million or a loss of $0.14 per diluted share last year. Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter was $2.4 million compared to $5.5 million in the first quarter of 2024.

第一季淨虧損為 910 萬美元，即每股虧損 0.20 美元，而去年淨虧損為 610 萬美元，即每股虧損 0.14 美元。第一季調整後 EBITDA 為 240 萬美元，而 2024 年第一季為 550 萬美元。

In the first quarter, we opened one company-owned restaurant and closed three company-owned restaurants. One franchise restaurant was closed in the first quarter. Our first quarter capital expenditures totaled $2.9 million compared to $8.6 million in 2024. Our debt balance at the end of the first quarter was $102.7 million with over $19 million available for future borrowings under our revolving credit facility.

第一季度，我們開設了一家公司自營餐廳，關閉了三家公司自營餐廳。第一季有一家特許經營餐廳關閉。我們第一季的資本支出總計 290 萬美元，而 2024 年為 860 萬美元。我們第一季末的債務餘額為 1.027 億美元，其中超過 1,900 萬美元可用於循環信貸額度下的未來借款。

Before turning to guidance, I want to highlight the significant progress in our financial foundation over the past 12 months. Through the actions we have taken, including a strategic reduction in capital spending and continued emphasis on smart cost savings, with over $5 million of savings in 2024 and a similar amount targeted for 2025, combined with the strong results Drew spoke to earlier, we are well positioned to strengthen our balance sheet this year. We are excited by the future we have ahead of us as our strategic plans are working, and we believe setting us up well to drive long-term shareholder value.

在談到指導之前，我想強調過去 12 個月我們財務基礎取得的重大進展。透過我們採取的行動，包括策略性地削減資本支出和繼續強調智慧成本節約，2024 年將節省超過 500 萬美元，2025 年的目標是節省類似數額，再加上 Drew 之前提到的強勁業績，我們完全有能力在今年加強我們的資產負債表。我們的策略計劃正在發揮作用，我們對未來充滿期待，我們相信這將為推動長期股東價值奠定良好基礎。

Turning to our full year guidance for 2025. We're extremely pleased with our year-to-date results, and we're reiterating our P&L guidance provided in March with one exception. We're widening the lower end of our restaurant contribution margin range by 50 basis points to capture an estimated impact from tariffs.

談到我們對 2025 年全年的指導。我們對今年迄今的業績非常滿意，我們重申 3 月提供的損益指引，但有一個例外。我們將餐廳貢獻利潤率範圍的下限擴大 50 個基點，以反映關稅的預期影響。

Due to most of our product being sourced from the US and over 50% of our food purchases for the remainder of 2025 being secured through fixed rate agreements, we believe our 2025 tariff exposure is limited and primarily relates to some of our produce items sourced from Central America and shrimp that's sourced from Asia.

由於我們的大部分產品都來自美國，並且 2025 年剩餘時間內超過 50% 的食品採購都是透過固定利率協議獲得的，因此我們認為 2025 年的關稅風險有限，主要涉及一些來自中美洲的農產品和來自亞洲的蝦。

Our complete guidance for the full year 2025 is as follows. Total revenue of $503 million to $512 million including mid-single digit comp restaurant sales group. Restaurant contribution margin between 12% and 14%. G&A expenses of $49 million to $52 million, inclusive of stock-based compensation expense of approximately $3.7 million. Depreciation and amortization expense of $27 million to $29 million. Interest expense of $8 million to $10 million.

我們對 2025 年全年的完整指導如下。總收入為 5.03 億美元至 5.12 億美元，其中包括中等個位數的餐廳銷售額。餐廳貢獻利潤率在12%至14%之間。一般及行政費用為 4,900 萬美元至 5,200 萬美元，其中包括約 370 萬美元的股票薪資費用。折舊和攤提費用為 2,700 萬美元至 2,900 萬美元。利息支出為800萬至1000萬美元。

We expect to open two new company-owned restaurants in 2025. One new restaurant opened in January, with the remaining restaurants scheduled to open in June. We expect to close 13 to 17 company-owned and 4 franchise restaurants in 2025. We estimate total 2025 capital expenditures of $11 million to $13 million.

我們預計在 2025 年開設兩家新的公司自營餐廳。一月份開設了一家新餐廳，其餘餐廳計劃於六月開業。我們預計到 2025 年將關閉 13 至 17 家公司自營餐廳和 4 家特許經營餐廳。我們估計 2025 年總資本支出為 1,100 萬至 1,300 萬美元。

As I mentioned earlier, with significantly lower capital expenditures in 2025, we continue to expect to reduce our debt balance in the back half of the year. For further information regarding our 2025 expectations, please see the business outlook section of our press release.

正如我之前提到的，由於 2025 年資本支出大幅下降，我們預計下半年債務餘額將繼續減少。有關我們 2025 年預期的更多信息，請參閱我們新聞稿中的業務展望部分。

With that, I'd like to turn the call back over to Drew for final remarks.

說完這些，我想把電話轉回給德魯，請他做最後的演講。

Thanks, Mike. It is an exciting time for Noodles as the improvements we have seen to date set the stage for a transformational 2025. Our comp momentum to start the year sets a strong foundation for our brand relaunch as we work to become more relevant to what today's consumer is looking for. Sustained top-line sales growth is the key to establishing a stronger business model that could justify new unit growth in the future, and which creates value for all stakeholders.

謝謝，麥克。對於 Noodles 來說，這是一個令人興奮的時刻，因為我們迄今為止所看到的改進為 2025 年的轉型奠定了基礎。我們年初的強勁勢頭為我們的品牌重塑奠定了堅實的基礎，我們致力於更加貼近當今消費者的需求。持續的營收成長是建立更強大的商業模式的關鍵，這種商業模式可以為未來新單位的成長提供理由，並為所有利害關係人創造價值。

Thank you for your time today. Operator, please open the lines for Q&A.

感謝您今天抽出時間。接線員，請開通問答線。

(Operator Instructions) Todd Brooks, Benchmark Company.

（操作員指示）托德·布魯克斯（Todd Brooks），Benchmark 公司。

Hey, thank you, and congrats on the strong start with the new menu. Great to see. If I could lead off --

嘿，謝謝你，並祝賀新菜單有一個良好的開端。很高興看到。如果我能領先--

Thanks, Todd.

謝謝，托德。

And it is a question about the new menu on two facets. One, the marketing commitment that you put behind it around the launch, how does that -- does that taper over the course of the year? Do you expect a continual kind of investment at the same level? So if we could walk through that.

這是關於新菜單的兩個方面的問題。首先，您在產品發佈時所投入的行銷投入，在一年的時間裡會如何減少？您是否期望持續維持相同水準的投資？所以如果我們能解決這個問題。

And then, secondly, if you look at how loyalty customers have responded to the menu knowing the brand well versus new to brand customers or non-loyalty customers, how they're responding given what you focus on in the advertising. I'd be curious if there's much of a spread there. Thanks.

其次，如果您觀察忠誠客戶對菜單的反應，以及熟悉該品牌的新客戶或非忠誠客戶對菜單的反應，那麼根據您在廣告中關注的重點，他們會做出怎樣的反應。我很好奇那裡是否有很大的傳播。謝謝。

Yeah, first on the marketing investment, we're really pleased with the response both to the marketing and the new creative messaging that the marketing is supporting. So as I said on our last call, we have roughly doubled our media investment over the first several months of the new menu.

是的，首先關於行銷投資，我們對行銷以及行銷所支持的新創意訊息的反應感到非常滿意。正如我在上次電話會議上所說的那樣，在新菜單推出後的頭幾個月裡，我們的媒體投資大約翻了一番。

And historically, we've put that media into paid search and into paid social, and we're going to continue that. But for this menu, we've invested additionally in some broader reach awareness-generating vehicles like connected TV, digital out-of-home, digital audio, online video, things like that really can broaden our potential audience.

從歷史上看，我們已經將媒體納入付費搜尋和付費社交，我們將繼續這樣做。但對於這個菜單，我們還額外投資了一些覆蓋面更廣的宣傳載體，如聯網電視、數位戶外、數位音訊、線上視頻，這些東西確實可以擴大我們的潛在受眾。

In the creative that we've put behind that media is really resonating with our customers as well. Historically or recently anyway, most of our creative has been telling a story about limited time offer. Right now, we're really taking advantage of the fact that we know there's an enduring love for noodles among a broad range of customers, and we believe we are the only brand out there, the only national chain that has a menu devoted entirely to noodles with a broad variety of flavor profiles and craveable dishes for everybody to choose from. And we're seeing a great response from that.

我們所創造的媒體也確實引起了客戶的共鳴。不管從歷史上看還是最近，我們的創意大多在講述限時優惠的故事。現在，我們真正利用了這樣一個事實：我們知道廣大顧客對麵條有著持久的熱愛，我們相信我們是市場上唯一的品牌，唯一的全國連鎖店，菜單完全是麵條，有各種口味和令人垂涎的菜餚供每個人選擇。我們看到了良好的反響。

So ultimately, the proof is in the traffic being up 1.8%. Our check is up almost 3%. Same-store sales are up almost 5%, a little over 5% through April. Our new menu is selling better than it did in test market, particularly Mac & Cheese. All the Mac & Cheese dishes are selling much better than they did in test market. Cajun Shrimp Fettuccine is selling better. Rigatoni Rosa is selling better.

因此，最終的證明就是流量成長了 1.8%。我們的支票金額上漲了近3%。同店銷售額成長近 5%，截至 4 月成長略高於 5%。我們的新菜單比試銷時賣得更好，尤其是 Mac & Cheese。所有起司通心粉的銷量都比試銷時好得多。卡真蝦寬麵的銷量較好。羅莎通心粉賣得更好。

And it's telling us that we are really saying something that guests are resonating with and paying attention to and acting on. And so we are now updating our media mix model and looking at whether additional investment like that throughout the course of the year would make sense, but we've certainly gotten a great response so far.

這告訴我們，我們確實在說一些能引起客人共鳴、關注和採取行動的事情。因此，我們現在正在更新我們的媒體組合模型，並研究全年進行此類額外投資是否有意義，但到目前為止，我們確實得到了很好的反響。

On the second question, yeah, our loyalty members know us better than others, and I think that's part of the reason we're seeing double-digit transaction growth in the loyalty. And also why we've seen such a good response to the most recent loyalty promotion we did, where we essentially invited current loyalty customers to sample the -- through the menu for a 14-day event where they had different offers every day to try something new and different.

關於第二個問題，是的，我們的忠誠會員比其他人更了解我們，我認為這也是我們看到忠誠度交易量達到兩位數成長的原因之一。這也是為什麼我們最近開展的忠誠度促銷活動反應如此熱烈的原因，在這次促銷活動中，我們邀請現有的忠誠度客戶品嚐——透過為期 14 天的活動菜單，他們每天都會有不同的優惠，嘗試一些新的和不同的東西。

It's a little early for us to read frequency. Yeah, it's only been seven weeks. But the increase in signups for loyalty and the increase in purchase and transactions from a loyalty, as well as just the broader increase in awareness, the increase in branded search, are really encouraging.

對我們來說，讀取頻率還有些早。是的，才七週。但忠誠度註冊人數的增加、忠誠度購買和交易的增加，以及更廣泛的知名度的提高、品牌搜尋的增加，確實令人鼓舞。

That's all great to hear. Congrats to you guys.

聽到這些真是太好了。恭喜你們。

Jake Bartlett, Truist Securities.

傑克·巴特利特（Jake Bartlett），Truist Securities。

Great, thanks for taking the question. And congrats on getting this menu out and then the transformation of the menu. Nice to see. I know all the work that's gone into it. My question is about how the reaction built over time. I guess, there could be some question about whether people try it out and it drives some traffic and then they don't come back or maybe it builds. So how has the traffic kind of trended since you launched it?

太好了，謝謝你回答這個問題。恭喜您推出此菜單並完成菜單的改造。很高興看到。我知道為此付出的所有努力。我的問題是，隨著時間的推移，這種反應是如何形成的。我想，人們可能會有疑問，他們是否嘗試過它，它是否帶來了一些流量，然後他們就不會再回來了，或者也許它會產生流量。那麼自從推出以來，流量趨勢如何？

And then, I guess building on that, what do you plan to do for the rest of the year? I know you just accomplished a lot so to ask what you're doing next is probably a lot, but what do you do to maintain this momentum, maybe even build on it?

然後，我想在此基礎上，您計劃在今年剩餘時間裡做什麼？我知道您已經完成了很多事情，因此詢問您下一步要做什麼可能有很多問題，但是您會做什麼來保持這種勢頭，甚至在此基礎上再接再厲呢？

Yeah, so the trend, the sales growth and transactions have remained strong, and that's why we added the additional comment about how our sales have maintained since the menu started through the month of April. So we're up over 5%, a little over 5% since the menu launch in March through April, and it started quickly, honestly.

是的，所以趨勢是，銷售成長和交易保持強勁，這就是為什麼我們添加了關於我們的銷售自菜單開始到四月份如何保持的額外評論。因此，自 3 月至 4 月菜單推出以來，我們的成長幅度已超過 5%，略高於 5%，而且說實話，成長速度很快。

I mean, it was -- we got a pretty good response right away in part because a lot of the early stage work we did with influencers and earned media, public relations up front and it started quickly. And there have been some changes, some impacts because of Easter, but if you take that out of the equation, transaction growth is maintained through April, and we're really excited about that.

我的意思是，我們很快就獲得了相當不錯的反響，部分原因是我們前期與網紅、免費媒體和公關部門做了大量工作，而且效果很快。雖然復活節期間也帶來了一些變化和影響，但如果不考慮這些因素，交易量增長會持續到4月份，我們對此感到非常興奮。

We will have some additional news over the course of the year, but it's not going to be at the same level as this menu transformation, and we want to make sure that we continue to execute this at a high level and keep our operations team set up for success.

我們將在今年發布一些額外的消息，但不會與這次菜單轉型處於同一水平，我們希望確保我們繼續在高水平上執行這一舉措，並讓我們的營運團隊為成功做好準備。

Great. And then, in terms of the margins and obviously, in the first quarter, margins were pressured by the menu launch and all the investments you made to make that successful. Can you help us understand what is one-time and what is ongoing. Trying to assess how maybe abnormally low the first quarter is because of the dynamics of offering the menu. In that, they called it a one-time charge or one-time expense of training. On a basis points basis, how much was that?

偉大的。然後，就利潤率而言，顯然，在第一季度，菜單發布和為實現成功而進行的所有投資給利潤率帶來了壓力。您能幫助我們理解什麼是一次性的，什麼是持續性的嗎？嘗試評估第一季度由於提供菜單的動態而導致的異常低的情況。他們稱之為一次性費用或一次性培訓開支。以基點計算，那是多少？

To Todd's question, maybe what is the right run rate for the level of spend for marketing? It seems like it would be higher in the first quarter than the remainder of the year. And then lastly on that, you mentioned that there were some G&A investments that were related to the menu launch. And so maybe the size that so we can understand how that might have pressured first quarter margins.

對於托德的問題，對於行銷支出水準來說，正確的運行率是多少？看起來第一季的增幅會比今年剩餘時間的增幅高。最後，您提到有一些與菜單發布相關的 G&A 投資。因此，也許我們可以理解這可能會對第一季的利潤率造成怎樣的壓力。

Yeah, I'll give you a headline thought on it first. As I said, we're very, very pleased with the transaction growth and the sales growth in the seven weeks since the menu launched. And our expectations overall for the or our results overall for the quarter are right on our expectations. We knew there was going to be some one-time investments, some obsolescence that we had to write off, some incremental training. We knew there's going to be some additional marketing up front.

是的，我首先會給你一個標題想法。正如我所說，我們對菜單推出以來七週內交易量和銷售額的成長感到非常滿意。我們對本季的整體預期或整體業績符合我們的預期。我們知道將會有一些一次性投資，一些我們必須註銷的過時投資，以及一些增量培訓。我們知道前期會有一些額外的行銷。

And in total, we are right on where we expected to be at the end of the first quarter. And we expect with continued sales growth and transaction growth, some additional smart cost savings over the course of the year, to improve quarter by quarter and that's why we reaffirmed our guidance going forward.

總體而言，我們第一季末的業績達到了預期。我們預計，隨著銷售額和交易量的持續增長，全年將出現一些額外的智慧成本節約，並將逐季度改善，這就是我們重申未來指引的原因。

Mike can give you a little more color, but we are right on our expectations for the quarter.

麥克可以給你更多細節，但我們對本季的預期是正確的。

Yeah, Drew covered it well. A couple of one-time costs to point out, we've talked about marketing, that's about $500,000 year over year. Some of that shows up in operating costs and some in G&A, and that was the G&A piece we mentioned in the prepared remarks. And then $1 million of just of other one-time menu rollout costs that are spread throughout the P&L. When the call out, would be about 60 basis points in COGS. So for the rest of the year, we would anticipate COGS to be closer to 26%.

是的，德魯報道得很好。需要指出的是幾項一次性成本，我們已經討論過行銷，每年約 50 萬美元。其中一些體現在營運成本中，有些體現在一般及行政費用中，這就是我們在準備好的評論中提到的一般及行政費用部分。然後還有 100 萬美元的其他一次性菜單推出成本，這些成本分攤在損益表中。當呼叫時，COGS 大約為 60 個基點。因此，對於今年剩餘時間，我們預計 COGS 將接近 26%。

Great. You said 50 basis points, five zero, for the COGS impact.

偉大的。您說的是 50 個基點，即 50 個零，這是對 COGS 的影響。

At 60 basis points in COGS.

銷貨成本為 60 個基點。

60 basis points. Okay.

60個基點。好的。

Six zero.

六零。

That will be 26%.

即為 26%。

Great. 26% for the remainder. Okay. And then last question is on free cash flow. You didn't I think use that term, but you mentioned kind of the balance sheet getting better and paying down debt in the back half of the year. I'm hoping we can be a little more explicit about when you expect free cash flow to turn positive.

太好了。剩下的是 26%。好的。最後一個問題是關於自由現金流。我認為您沒有使用這個術語，但您提到資產負債表有所改善並且下半年債務有所償還。我希望我們可以更明確地說明您預期自由現金流何時會變成正數。

Your net debt actually went down a touch in the first quarter, so maybe you were free cash flow even in the first quarter. Maybe just to help us out to that trajectory of when we can really start feeling good about the balance sheet.

您的淨債務在第一季實際上略有下降，因此即使在第一季您也可能有自由現金流。也許只是為了幫助我們了解何時我們才能真正開始對資產負債表感到滿意。

Sure. And yes, we were slightly free cash flow positive in the first quarter. There are some working capital timing items that will work against us in the second quarter, so we are anticipating in Q3 and in Q4 to be free cash flow positive.

當然。是的，第一季我們的自由現金流略微為正。一些營運資本時間安排項目將在第二季對我們不利，因此我們預計第三季和第四季的自由現金流將為正值。

Great. I appreciate it and I'll pass it on. Thank you.

偉大的。我很感激並會傳達這一點。謝謝。

Thank you.

謝謝。

This concludes the question-and-answer session as well as today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

問答環節以及今天的電話會議到此結束。現在您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。