Subway Sale Virtually a Completed Deal, Report Says – FranchiseWire

Non-public-Fairness Agency Roark Capital Leads the Pack with $9.6 Billion Supply

Roark Capital is on monitor to shut quickly on a roughly $9.6 billion buy of the Subway sandwich chain, The Wall Street Journal has reported. The newspaper’s unnamed sources mentioned that after an intense, prolonged public sale, the sale could even be accomplished this week. Roark Capital has for a very long time invested within the restaurant trade, with stakes which have included Auntie Anne’s pretzel outlets, Arby’s and Jimmy John’s sandwich shops, and Baskin-Robbins and Carvel ice cream manufacturers.

Roark Capital has competed with a joint proposal from two private-equity companies, TDR and Sycamore, (and different bids) earlier than ascending to be the main suitor for the fast-food sub sandwich eating places. The Journal mentioned one other group might nonetheless swoop in late with an even bigger successful provide for the Milford, Conn. primarily based franchise and corporate-run sub outlets, nevertheless.

Sale Follows Decline

Because it was established in 1965, members of Subway’s two founding households have owned and operated the sprawling enterprise. Talks of a possible sale emerged in January 2023. The next month, Subway disclosed that it had employed advisers to help in managing the sale process, The Journal said. Subway had $9.8 billion in home gross sales throughout about 20,800 areas in 2022, primarily based on numbers from market analysis specialist Technomic. The model has round 37,000 sandwich eating places globally. It’s the eighth-biggest restaurant chain in america.

Subway had aggressively expanded throughout its first few many years, however lately has underperformed. Shops closed and franchisees bailed as rival manufacturers prospered. Its worldwide gross sales topped out at $18 billion in 2012, in accordance with Technomic.

Controversy and Complaints Below Chidsey

In 2019 John Chidsey, previously the CEO of Burger King, turned the primary Subway CEO who wasn’t a member of the founding households. He has labored to reinvigorate the chain with modifications in U.S. menus and a splashy sports-VIP advertising marketing campaign that controversially featured Megan Rapinoe. Chidsey has discovered a shiny sport abroad, although. Subway has succeeded in including to its overseas footprint (together with plans for 4,000 China items within the subsequent 20 years) whereas persevering with to shut U.S. shops.

Indignant Franchisees

Adjustments to franchise agreements throughout Chidsey’s tenure have infuriated franchisees, prompting them to promote up or shut. They complained that Subway’s operations and menus differed considerably from these of Burger King and that Chidsey due to this fact doesn’t adequately perceive the model. For its half, Subway maintains that it has moved towards a choice for multi-unit franchisees over homeowners of only one or two items.

The late co-founder Fred DeLuca had run the chain till contracting leukemia; his sister Suzanne Greco then took over, retiring in 2018. Co-founder Peter Buck died in 2021. The DeLuca and Buck households nonetheless have investments in Subway.