New Fazoli's Food Truck To Tour U.S.

Fazoli's is taking its popular breadsticks on the road to 15 cities across the country this summer to raise awareness and funds for childhood hunger charity Feed the Children.

The brand of more than 220 quick-service Italian restaurants has unveiled a new food truck, the Breadstick Express, to visit the chain's markets across the United States. The truck will hand out breadsticks and coupons for $5 off any Family Meal in order to encourage customers to visit a Fazoli's and donate to Feed the Children.

"Fazoli's is a place where families can go to enjoy a meal together; we are committed to helping families who are less fortunate as well," Cathy Hull, Fazoli's chief marketing officer, said in a statement. "Reaching out and handing a person a breadstick is the simplest way to convey our commitment to childhood hunger."

Fazoli's makes more than 100 million breadsticks every year, the company said. For the 15-city tour, the "breadstick ambassadors" driving the food truck will not only hand out the items and coupons, but also will post photos and updates for every stop along the way to Fazoli's Twitter page and a special tab on the brand's Facebook page.

The tour begins June 21 in the Fazoli's headquarters city of Lexington, Ky. From Lexington, Fazoli's breadstick tour will travel to Indianapolis, St. Louis and Denver before finishing Aug. 14 in South Bend, Ind. Other stops will include Evansville, Ind.; Paducah, Ky.; Kansas City, Mo.; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Lincoln and Omaha, Neb.; Des Moines, Iowa; and Madison and Green Bay, Wis.

In April, Fazoli's unveiled a new marketing campaign to tout the "Whole New Fazoli's," which encompassed a new store prototype, an enhanced menu, table service, and a move to real plates and silverware. The tour is designed to help drive more traffic and trial of many of these newly reimaged restaurants.

The company has said on previous occasions that the rebranding toward a more "premium QSR" positioning has increased sales and traffic.

Boca Raton, Fla.-based private-equity firm Sun Capital Partners acquired Fazoli's in 2006.

Contact Mark Brandau at mark.brandau@penton.com.
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