Over 500 US Subway locations to close

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Brian Lutz
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Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by Brian Lutz »

https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/ ... ar-AAwkUki

Not surprising, given some of their recent troubles.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by storewanderer »

I am not sure this is anything new. Subways have opened and closed a lot over the years...

I wonder if the difference is they are actually doing de-franchising now vs. previous closures were failed franchises.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by Super S »

Subway is a franchise that has simply become too big and bloated. There is a LOT of inconsistency between locations. Some are well run, others are not. The pricing as well as the product mix is also inconsistent.

I think Subway could become a good franchise again if they can weed out the bad operators and up their standards a bit. In my opinion, this is long overdue.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by babs »

500 is a low number. I can name a dozen that have closed over the past few months just in my local area.

They need some product innovation and a new marketing approach. The perception of the chain has dramatically changed from being the healthy place to eat to something serving unhealthy meats and veggies. The world has evolved, Subway has not. I still like the place but mostly because a $6 foot long is a great deal and I feel good after eating it. But sandwiches do taste better elsewhere but you'll pay more and I'm doubtful they are any better for you.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by Super S »

babs wrote: April 26th, 2018, 8:41 am 500 is a low number. I can name a dozen that have closed over the past few months just in my local area.

They need some product innovation and a new marketing approach. The perception of the chain has dramatically changed from being the healthy place to eat to something serving unhealthy meats and veggies. The world has evolved, Subway has not. I still like the place but mostly because a $6 foot long is a great deal and I feel good after eating it. But sandwiches do taste better elsewhere but you'll pay more and I'm doubtful they are any better for you.
The last few times I have been to Subway, a footlong and a small drink was over $10. This is a basic one with either ham or turkey. Price/value is part of the problem.

A healthy place to eat also needs to practice things like basic cleanliness. I have seen many Subways lately where you are lucky to find clean tables. And one relatively new location that had green mold growing in the restroom, not to mention the restroom itself was so dirty and disgusting I ended up eating elsewhere.

Many Subways (including one local one which is well run) are good places to eat, but the inconsistency is more and more apparent, and I am leery of eating at Subway outside of my local area now.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by rwsandiego »

Super S wrote: April 26th, 2018, 10:26 am
babs wrote: April 26th, 2018, 8:41 am 500 is a low number. I can name a dozen that have closed over the past few months just in my local area.

They need some product innovation and a new marketing approach. The perception of the chain has dramatically changed from being the healthy place to eat to something serving unhealthy meats and veggies. The world has evolved, Subway has not. I still like the place but mostly because a $6 foot long is a great deal and I feel good after eating it. But sandwiches do taste better elsewhere but you'll pay more and I'm doubtful they are any better for you.
The last few times I have been to Subway, a footlong and a small drink was over $10. This is a basic one with either ham or turkey. Price/value is part of the problem.

A healthy place to eat also needs to practice things like basic cleanliness. I have seen many Subways lately where you are lucky to find clean tables. And one relatively new location that had green mold growing in the restroom, not to mention the restroom itself was so dirty and disgusting I ended up eating elsewhere.

Many Subways (including one local one which is well run) are good places to eat, but the inconsistency is more and more apparent, and I am leery of eating at Subway outside of my local area now.
You hit the nail on the head. When I lived in San Diego, there were five Subways I would eat at. One was down the street from my home and was very well-run. Everything was fresh, the place was spotless, and the employees were very friendly and fast. They were also committed to making a great sandwich. Another was not far from work. It was a family affair. Again, spotless, fresh, fast, and friendly. The other three were all owned by the same franchisee and all delivered a good experience, but not as good as the other two locations. Still, the food was good and the places were clean. Other than those five stores, well, I just never know whether I'm walking into the dumpy Subway, the rude Subway, the "let's skimp on the veggies" Subway, or...you get the picture.
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Re: Over 500 US Subway locations to close

Post by pseudo3d »

babs wrote: April 26th, 2018, 8:41 am 500 is a low number. I can name a dozen that have closed over the past few months just in my local area.

They need some product innovation and a new marketing approach. The perception of the chain has dramatically changed from being the healthy place to eat to something serving unhealthy meats and veggies. The world has evolved, Subway has not. I still like the place but mostly because a $6 foot long is a great deal and I feel good after eating it. But sandwiches do taste better elsewhere but you'll pay more and I'm doubtful they are any better for you.
They started doing wraps (which just slows down lines as employees are not well trained in it) and in 2015, eliminated artificial colors and flavors, which was more window dressing in modern trends, and not actually improving in the product. They need to get their supply chain in line, tomatoes are sliced in house (using a scary-looking cutter that could cut fingers if you're not careful) and the quality is variable at best (seeds fly everywhere due to softer tomatoes and slightly dull blades--and I mean everywhere). They also need some sort of mascot that's not an actual living person (Jared was fine for one advertising campaign, but actually making him a long-person mascot was always a massive liability).
rwsandiego wrote: April 26th, 2018, 7:43 pm the "let's skimp on the veggies" Subway
If I recall, the official number for a footlong is always six of every vegetable (so six jalapeños, six cucumber slices, six pickles), which is pretty dinky by itself.
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