Are franchisee modifications to Noodles & Company restaurant plans and specifications subject to copyright protection by the franchisor?
Noodles_Company Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We claim copyright protection for our Noodles & Company Operations Manual; printed advertising and promotional materials; certain plans and specifications for the design, layout and development of Noodle & Company restaurants (and any modifications you make to those plans), product specifications, computer programs, training materials, newsletters, and other operations and accounting materials and forms.
We also consider certain information used in the development and operations of Noodles & Company restaurants, trade secrets and proprietary information. This information includes, but is not limited to:
- (1) ingredients, recipes and methods of preparation and presentation of certain food products;
- (2) site selection criteria for Noodles & Company restaurants and plans and specifications for the development of Noodles & Company restaurants;
- (3) sales, marketing and advertising programs and techniques for Noodles & Company restaurants;
- (4) identity of suppliers and knowledge of specifications, processes, procedures and equipment, and pricing for authorized food products, materials, supplies and equipment;
- (5) knowledge of operating results and financial performance of Noodles & Company restaurants, other than your own Noodles & Company restaurants;
- (6) methods of inventory control, storage, product handling, food cost and management of Noodles & Company restaurants;
- (7) computer systems and software programs; and
- (8) other information and specifications related to the development and operation of Noodles & Company restaurants that are included in the Noodles & Company Operations Manual and in other materials that we provide to you.
All ideas, concepts, methods or techniques useful to Noodles & Company restaurants, whether or not constituting protectable intellectual property, and whether created by you or on your behalf, must be promptly disclosed to us and, if adopted as part of the System, will be considered our property and works made-for-hire for us. You must sign whatever documents we request to evidence our ownership or to assist us in securing intellectual property rights in the ideas, concepts, methods or techniques.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 58–60)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Noodles & Company Franchise Disclosure Document, Noodles & Company asserts copyright protection over its restaurant plans and specifications, including any modifications made by franchisees. This means that while a franchisee may alter the standard restaurant design, the copyright for those alterations ultimately belongs to Noodles & Company.
This policy has significant implications for prospective Noodles & Company franchisees. It means that any unique design elements or modifications a franchisee develops for their restaurant become the property of Noodles & Company. The franchisee cannot replicate these designs in other ventures or share them with other businesses without the franchisor's permission. This is fairly standard practice in franchising, as it allows the franchisor to maintain brand consistency and control over the system's intellectual property.
Furthermore, Noodles & Company requires franchisees to disclose any ideas, concepts, methods, or techniques developed that are useful to Noodles & Company restaurants. If these are adopted into the Noodles & Company system, they become the franchisor's property as "works made-for-hire." Franchisees must also sign documents to confirm Noodles & Company's ownership and assist in securing intellectual property rights. This clause emphasizes that any innovation within the franchise system, even if initiated by a franchisee, can be incorporated and owned by Noodles & Company, further protecting the brand's intellectual property.