The latest piece of El Pollo Loco’s brand turnaround is a refresh of its design and marketing efforts, both online and in-store, which will launch on May 15.
The restaurant chain’s new look, tagline and layout were introduced in a new ad campaign released on May 2.
Previous rebrand efforts included adding new executives to El Pollo Loco’s C-suite team following Chief Executive Liz Williams’ appointment in 2024 and hiring Huntington Beach-based Innocean USA as its new creative agency.
El Pollo Loco’s updated look accompanies its newest restaurant prototype, revealed last October, designed with a smaller footprint for reduced building costs to help drive unit growth again, according to Williams. Kiosks for digital ordering are part of the new look as well and have been installed in more than 200 restaurants.
“El Pollo Loco’s brand refresh is part of a broader strategy to strengthen its identity, keep pace with cultural trends, and increase awareness as it looks to continue its growth trajectory,” the company said in a statement.
The Costa Mesa-based company (Nasdaq: LOCO), founded 50 years ago, reported first-quarter results that “fell short of our expectations on sales and store level profit” on May 1. Shares were down 3.1% to $9.14 apiece with a market cap of $274 million during midday trading.
