Subway (restaurant)
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Template:Infobox Company Subway is the name of a multinational restaurant franchise that sells sandwiches and salads. It was founded in 1965 by Fred De Luca and Dr. Peter Buck, and has been one the fastest growing franchises in the world. For most of the past 15 years, Subway has averaged more than 1000 new locations a year. The corporate name of Subway is Doctor's Associates Inc. (DAI). The corporate headquarters of DAI is in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; however a subsidiary of Subway called Franchise World Headquarters (FWH) is based in Milford, Connecticut and most of the day to day operations are conducted there. In the late 1990s, Subway overtook the McDonald's Corporation as the fast food chain with the most sites in the North America. Many restaurant analysts attribute this to the growing concern on health by restaurant customers, a trend that Subway has taken advantage of in its marketing. In 1999, an Indiana University student named Jared Fogle claimed to have lost 245 pounds (110 kg) with a diet made up mostly of Subway sandwiches. The story is used by Subway as a large part of their marketing campaign. Jared has emerged as a spokesman for Subway, furthering their image as a health-conscious restaurant chain.
The first submarine sandwich shop opened by Fred DeLuca and Peter Buck was opened in 1965 in Bridgeport, Connecticut under the name "Pete's Submarine Sandwiches". The name was changed to "Pete's Subway" and eventually just "Subway". The chain punningly used the New York Subway as its decorative motif, and has a sandwich named the BMT after the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit subway line, although in advertising this has been described as "Bigger, Meatier, Tastier."
A large part of Subway's growth can be attributed not only to its place as a more health-conscious restaurant, but also to its somewhat unique business model in the fast-food industry. Unlike most franchisors, DAI does not own any restaurants (except for one store in Connecticut which is a test store for new concepts and products). DAI does not even have any regional offices. Instead, Subway enters into a contract with a franchisee in each market, giving this franchisee the title and position of Development Agent for that market. The Development Agent then becomes responsible for developing new locations for that market, evaluating stores on a monthly basis, and assisting the franchisee with whatever needs they may have. By using this business model, Subway has been able to keep up their aggressive growth.
Many different types of subs are served at Subway, ranging from common sandwiches, such as ham, turkey, and cold cut trio (composed of turkey-based ham, salami, and bologna), to more unusual creations, such as Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, Southwest Chipotle Cheese Steak and (at some locations) a garden burger/veggie-max sandwich. As a result of the low-carb marketing trend, Subway now offers any of its 6-inch sandwiches as low-carb wraps. In 2004, Subway added the option to have sandwiches toasted in large part due to competition from Quizno's, a new, but quickly growing sandwich chain.
Prior to its December 12, 2003 announcement that, by the second quarter of 2005, all of its restaurants would provide Coca-Cola beverages, 85 percent of Subway restaurants carried beverages marketed by Pepsi.
Subway is the corporate sponsor for two NASCAR Nextel Cup series stock car races: the Subway Fresh 500, held at Phoenix International Raceway; and the Subway 500, held at Martinsville Speedway.
Subway-restaurant.jpg
Related
External links
- Subway (official site) (http://www.subway.com/)
- History of Subway (http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/AboutSubway/history/subwayHistory.aspx)
- Order Subway Online (http://www.ordersubway.com/)
- Yahoo! - Doctor's Associates Inc. Company Profile (http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/40/40450.html)
- - Subway Australia (http://www.subway.com.au/)de:Subway (Schnellrestaurant)