NEW YORK, NY – Entrepreneur.com announced earlier this week that Subway has topped its Franchise 500 list, the ninth time in the past 10 years that the sandwich chain has claimed the top spot on its annual list.
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The news is all the more surprising this year, as the recession has reshuffled nearly the entire Franchise 500. However, the $5 Footlong strategy landed the QSR on top, a testament to consumers’ strong interest to the chain and its value sandwich.
"It's been kind of astounding. Our growth has been enormous," said Fred DeLuca, who co-founded Subway in 1965 at age 17. The company has grown from 250 restaurants in 1982 to 11,000 in 1995 to more than 32,000 worldwide this year.
DeLuca said that Subway’s “pivotal” moment came 10 years ago, when it began positioning itself as a healthful alternative to burgers and fries.
Subway’s growth can be traced to its winning concept: Many Subway restaurants are as small as 600 square feet, with initial costs as low as $84,000. Additionally, there are no griddles, fryers, or drive-thrus, meaning franchisees can open their restaurants almost anywhere. Indeed, more than 7,000 Subways have emerged in convenience and department stores, at racetracks, and one at a mega-church.
The $5 Footlong promotion, which launched nationally in 2008, is sustaining the company through the recession. It has increased same-store sales by double digits while creating a benchmark for QSR marketing. Today, there are $5 promotions offered by Quiznos, Blimpies, and other sandwich chains.
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"People are trading down from full-service restaurants to fast food," DeLuca said. "There's value in tapping into the mass market and being a business that thinks of and sells to everyone."
Subway is planning to launch a national breakfast menu in 2010, a move that Entrepreneur.com said, “seems destined to rock the fast-food status quo.”
NACS Daily previously reported that Subway is projected to overtake McDonald's as the Q
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