Restaurant brand seeks casual dining expertise as it courts a younger audience
HOA Brands, parent of the Hooters restaurant chain, has selected Firehouse as its new creative agency of record, succeeding The Morrison Agency, which held the account for the last seven years.
HOA is the franchisor and operator of more than 410 Hooters restaurants in 38 U.S. states and 24 countries, known for their chicken wings and their servers’ revealing uniforms. The company said Firehouse would help set brand strategy and lead creative campaigns for Hooters’ “next chapter.”
Firehouse was selected following a monthlong review that included Morrison, said Bruce Skala, chief marketing officer of HOA Brands. “We wanted a fresh approach from an agency that had a little more experience and focus on the casual dining space,” Skala said. “We had been with our current agency for seven-plus years and we thought it was time to explore the opportunities through an RFP.”
Firehouse has worked with numerous restaurant chains including Chili’s, Dick’s Last Resort, Macaroni Grill, On the Border and Twin Peaks, according to its website. The Dallas-based agency ranked as one of Ad Age’s Best Places to Work in 2022.
Hooters spent $5.3 million on U.S. measured media in 2022, according to Vivvix, including paid social data from Pathmatics. For all of 2021, Hooters spent $4.3 million on measured media.
Skala said Hooters, which turns 40 years old this year, is seeking to connect with younger audiences and grow through loyalty and digital sales. The company is also actively seeking new franchisees.
NIL deals
Hooters has taken a unique approach to college athlete name, image and likeness (NIL) deals. Last season, Hooters signed the entire offensive lines of 17 college football teams. The strategy gave Hooters a good bang for its buck, Skala said, while supporting its blue-collar appeal.
“Other places might sign a quarterback or the star wide receiver, but who is in our restaurants? It’s the working men and women of America. [Offensive linemen] are the guys who didn’t get a lot of love with sponsorships. And we made clear that we got the entire offensive line as a group, if we sponsored you. That paired well with the average party size at our restaurants,” Skala said.
NILs “provide us a spot in the wheel of consideration for where to go eat,” Skala said. Hooters’ athletes produce content on social media, “and they get their friends to go to Hooters to watch the games.”
‘Not controversial’
Hooters maintains pro sponsorships with golfer John Daly and NASCAR driver Chase Elliott. Daly fits the brand’s knowingly tacky image; his son John Daly II, a golfer at the University of Arkansas, has a Hooters NIL deal. Hooters’ branding runs on Elliott’s car in certain races and the company runs a virtual restaurant concept called Chase Elliott’s Chicken Tenders.
Golfers John Daly II (left) and John Daly are Hooters endorsers. Credit: Hooters
Skala rejected the notion that the short shorts and low-cut tops worn by Hooters’ servers created an obstacle to reaching younger audiences. “On the contrary, everyone who’s wearing the orange shorts is in the Gen Z age group,” he said. “We’re not controversial; it’s a standard outfit. If you scan the Internet, there’s a million things more risqué than us. We don’t feel it’s any impediment to business.”
Firehouse will have responsibility for national broadcast, digital video and audio, social and out-of-home advertising. The agency’s first work is due in late summer or fall, Skala said.
“We look forward to building on the iconic brand that has brought guests some of the most craveable menu items around the world and entertained with a concept featuring the iconic Hooters Girls and a one-of-a-kind neighborhood atmosphere,” Firehouse CEO Steve Smith stated in a press release. “We’re ready to dream big and challenge conventions together.”
Hooters touts 100% unaided brand awareness among its strengths. Skala described the Hooters brand as “fun, casual dining for everyone that has proven its resiliency over the past 40 years. We are not formal at all, and we don’t take ourselves too seriously.”
Hooters’ same-store sales have improved each of the last two years, with in-store dining reaching pre-pandemic levels, Skala said. The company is looking to grow its delivery business in part through a small concept called Hoots Wings with a handful of locations.
Hooters is owned by private equity firms Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors, which acquired the chain in 2019 from H.I.G. Partners and Chanticleer Holdings.
