Comfort Fuel
Cooked up a campus eatery’s manifesto that expresses their best-of-both-worlds approach
Challenge
Comfort Fuel, a University of Wisconsin–Madison (UWM) newcomer, approached us with an energizing menu and specific goals in mind. They wanted to stand out among the local competition and rethink the fast casual restaurant concept by championing balance. The branding had to convey warmth and quality, familiarity and freshness. It had to be lively enough to attract student-athletes without alienating other customers. And most importantly, it had to appeal to guests whether dining in or grabbing to go.
Approach
As copywriter on this project, I led the creation of Comfort Fuel’s verbal identity and key messaging elements that, with the visual identity, would bring the brand to life. I worked closely with the campus eatery’s co-founder and seasoned restaurateur Doug Hamaker—and the rest of Grip’s creative team—to cook up all the ingredients necessary.
We took a both/and approach that underscored the brand’s beliefs on food and hospitality: Comfort Fuel, at its heart, is a tribute to the comfort of home cooking with a healthy, won’t-slow-you-down twist.
Spotlight: Brand Manifesto
I used storytelling to translate the brand’s ethos into a unifying message about their best-of-both-worlds differentiator. This allowed everyone at Comfort Fuel to rally around the notion that food can nourish and taste like it came from your mom’s kitchen. By crafting a playful narrative that mirrored their modern consumer’s everyday pace and needs, I demonstrated an understanding of brand and audience—while providing a natural solution that positions Comfort Fuel not solely as a restaurant, but a way of living.
Impact
Today, Comfort Fuel is thriving with an identity that embodies their “tastes good, keeps ya moving” mantra and sets them apart in Madison’s fast casual food scene. A brand that keeps eager eaters returning for more enabled the business to expand their efforts to catering. That means even more customers—especially their #1 audience (UW sports teams)—are kept happy and well-fed, movin’ and smilin’.
