Subway

Although Subway started out as a small sandwich shop nearly 45 years ago, Subway has emerged over the past five years as one of the fastest growing fast food companies in the United States. Subway has used innovative techniques such as the extremely popular $5 Footlong (introduced in 2008) to enable it to survive and grow during the 2008 recession. Subway has developed a reputation as a “healthy” restaurant, which has enabled it to attract customers that are concerned about their weight. Subways spokesman Wes Winograd talks about how the restaurant is able to live up to their motto “Eat Fresh”. “The idea of Subway as a healthy alternative came from the fact that we don’t fry anything. There are a lot of veggies on the sandwiches. The meats are low fat. Things like that.”   The documentary “Super Size Me”(introduced in 2004) awakened consumers to the drastic effects from the fast food industries.   In particular the movie blasted McDonalds, as the lead actor Morgan Spurlock gained 24 ½ pounds in just 28 days by eating at a McDonalds three times per day.   The movie helped to spur the growth of fast food chains such as Subway that offered products appealing to health conscious customers. Subway was able to capitalize on this movie and the emerging health trend and used a man named Jared as an advertising dynamo. “"When Jared came on the scene, things just got out of hand," Winograd recalled. "It really put us on the map. He had lost 245 pounds on a diet that he designed, which included eating nothing but Subway for about a year and supplemented it with an extensive exercise program. He went from morbidly obese to healthy, so we put him in some commercials, and it resonated with consumers. People to this day write and tell us that he inspired them. People related because he was a regular guy. We didn't ask him to lose weight."   Subway created healthy and fresh sandwiches; for example, “the meatball marinara sub has 379 calories and 23 calories of fat in the 6-inch version.”

Through its innovative advertising techniques, its franchisee approach, and its appealing and value oriented sandwich offering, Subway has been able to change the competitive landscape in the restaurant industry.   In fact, by the end of 2009, Subway had more than 32,000 food stores, exceeding the total number of McDonalds’ stores.   Ten years ago, fast food customers would choose among McDonalds, Burger King or Wendys for a quick fix. How Subway is now a featured fast food chain and is growing at a very fast rate.   In fact, Subway has used its $5 Footlong sandwiches to attract budget-conscious customers enabling to grow during the current recession.  Because of their success, entrepreneurs want to invest in the Subway concept. According to Wes Winograd, "We've got franchisees that used to be customers who now want to start a store. Since the recession, we've gotten a lot more inquiries, which is traditional: There's a mistrust for working for a corporation, and it's the American dream to run your own business."   Unlike most franchisors, Subway doesn’t operate any of its restaurants. The company’s success has been noted in the 2009 Zagat’s fast food survey where it was rated the best provider of “Healthy Options” and ranked first in the “Best Service” and “Most Popular” categories.”

http://motherjones.com/environment/2009/10/step-aside-mcdonalds-why-subway-has-most-fast-food-stores-country