On Tuesday, Subway announced that it was looking into selling the sandwich business.
Since its inception in 1965, the Subway restaurant chain in Milford, Connecticut, has been privately held. With 37,000 locations spread across more than 100 countries, it is currently one of the biggest restaurant chains in the world.
There is no timeline for a sale and there is no guarantee that one will ever take place, according to a statement on Subway’s website. The company is receiving advice from J.P. Morgan, who will also handle the sale exploration process.
Current years have seen Subway losing market share to quickly expanding competitors like Panera and Firehouse Subs, which offer more variety menus and more recent locations. After taking note, Subway launched a modernization initiative for its stores in 2017. It updated its menu and ingredient quality in 2021, and it debuted a line of sandwiches created by chefs the previous year.
In a statement, Subway claimed that its management team “remains committed to the future and will continue to execute on its multi-year transformation plan, which includes a focus on menu innovation, restaurant modernization, and improvements to its overall guest experience.”
According to Subway, 2022 was a record year for the company, which has now recorded same-store sales increase in eight straight quarters.
Nuclear physicist Peter Buck and Fred DeLuca established the first Subway restaurant in 1965 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, under the name “Pete’s Super Submarines.” In 1968, the restaurant’s name was changed to Subway. Buck passed away in 2021, while DeLuca died in 2015.
