More than a third of 13,000+ students who attend Tulane University hail from the Northeast, so appealing to the tastes of out-of-state students with
concepts like Pickles is a driving force of Tulane University Dining Services by Sodexo’s branding efforts. After dining guests began to lose interest in a
national sandwich chain in Tulane University’s medical school food court, extensive market research led to the development of this concept, an authentic
New York-style deli that served local, homemade, and premium brands to target Tulane students’ desire for quality foods in a themed setting. Handwritten
fonts, chalkboard elements, and rustic styling suffuse the visual branding of Pickles, suggesting the freshness and authenticity of the ingredients used to
make its signature sandwiches. New York-themed menu concepts – two of the most popular sandwiches are called Reubenfeller Square and I <3 New
Pork – catch the attention of students with an interest in NYC culture and capitalize on their pop culture knowledge.
The homemade sandwiches, which are made to order and wrapped in Pickles-branded butcher paper to complete the handcrafted atmosphere of a
neighborhood joint, have caught the eye of Tulane students. Both total transactions and monetary sales increased in Pickles’ first three months, bringing
in double the revenue which the national chain in the same location had achieved.