Vs Goliath: Jersey Mike’s Subs vs Subway

Initially marketed as a healthier fast-food alternative, submarine sandwich chains have become fast-food behemoths with their own competitive hierarchy. At the top of that list is the always recognizable Subway, a company who once seemed to take on an impossible task against McDonald’s and now stands shoulder to shoulder with them as a goliath. They positioned themselves as a leader in value with their “five-dollar footlong” promotion and the guise of their healthy options. This led to massive international expansion and the brand now regularly battles for the spot of No. 1 fast-food chain in the world. Subway blazed quite the trail and it wasn’t long before other sandwich chains gave chase. Jersey Mike’s Subs has become one of their fastest growing competitors by putting a premium twist on classic menu items. Taking on Subway is a tall task, does Jersey Mike’s have what it takes?

Subway got its start back in 1965 as Pete’s Super Submarines and switched to the Subway name in 1968 before franchising their first location in 1974. The chain grew quickly after that and hit 500 stores by 1985 and 11,000 by 1995. Subway’s international success was a key component in their rapid expansion and rise through the fast-food ranks. Positioning themselves as a healthy fast-food alternative allowed them to siphon consumers and avoid some of the public backlash that was aimed at their competitors for their fried food and greasy burgers. This was coupled with value promotions that had catchy names, like “five-dollar footlong”, allowing the chain to bring in droves of new customers. Depending on the year, Subway is ranked as the No. 1 or No. 2 fast-food chain in the world next to McDonalds, no small feat when you consider how dominant the golden arches are in this category. In recent years, Subway moved away from their value offerings and made some headlines for the wrong reasons. Their status as a healthy alternative was questioned when the Supreme Court of Ireland ruled that the chain’s bread had too much sugar to meet the nation’s legal definition in 2020. When compared to restaurants like Sweetgreen, Subway is not considered as healthy as it once was. The company has gone through several revamps over the past few years in an attempt to reclaim lost consumers. Subway launched a new menu of pre-designed sandwiches to improve efficiency and tied each item to a celebrity athlete in new ad campaigns. New competitors have taken some of the shine that they once had, yet their recent sale of $9.6 billion to Roark Capital indicates that the brand is far from being topped.

One of the competitors that has stolen the thunder from Subway is Jersey Mike’s Subs. In many ways their restaurant is a modern update to what Subway used to be. They offer a deli counter that moves as an assembly line and have a menu with a number of pre-designed sandwiches that can be customized and altered to the customer’s liking. They also offer hot subs that are made freshly on a grill in front of consumers with a premium feeling to all of their meats and toppings. This experience is reflected in the price and the company is not concerned with the fast part of fast-food. All deli meats are sliced to order, an idea that Subway has recently added to their own restaurants. This sets Jersey Mike’s apart and has captured patrons who are looking for a more personalized experience that doesn’t try to please everyone. It is a measure of their success that their competitor Subway has attempted to fold so many of these ideas into their latest rebranding. Jersey Mike’s slower service and pricey strategy may prevent them from being as ubiquitous as Subway, yet they have already carved out a sizable space in fast-food.

Despite some stumbling along the way, Subway is a Goliath that will likely never be unseated. Their widespread appeal has opened eyes to the value of a good sandwich, and many will always associate a customized sub with their brand. However, the massive footprint of Subway has opened the door for competitors like Jersey Mike’s who don’t have to worry about pleasing customers across tens of thousands of locations around the world.