Say goodbye to Subway’s $5 Footlong

Company promises new tastes in overhaul

Subway Restaurants’ $5 Footlong jingle is the kind of ear worm that’s hard to get out of your head, but now you might have to.

The iconic sandwich may no longer be at your local restaurant. Trevor Haynes, current CEO of the Milford, Connecticut, company, told USA TODAY in an exclusive interview that starting this month, each franchisee will be allowed to decide whether to sell the sub that is so famous. Or infamous.

When the chain brought back the $5 Footlong last winter after a yearslong absence, many franchisees were irate. They complained loudly of the slim margins they earned off of the discounted ‘wich, and according to Haynes, the company – whose restaurants are 100 percent franchised – listened to the gripes.

“How do we help our franchises with more of a regional value message, so they’re able to (have) a value proposition that fits with their economic model,” Haynes said. “If you look at California, there’s a very different cost of business than in Arkansas.”

The 53-year-old privately-held company, originally called Pete’s Super Submarines, had $16.8 billion in global sales in 2017, thanks to some 44,000 restaurants worldwide, including 25,000 in the U.S. Subway, which has put about 1,300 stateside locations on the chopping block in two years, declined to share growth percentages or customer traffic numbers.

Haynes, 47, became CEO this summer after Suzanne Greco, sister of Subway co-founder Fred DeLuca, retired. The Australian has worked for the company for 12 years on three continents and inherited a brand still smarting from the sex and child-pornography scandal of former spokesman Jared Fogle.

Here are four other changes Haynes shared:

❚ Other cheap eats are available: Remember that some franchisees may choose to retain the $5 Footlong, but Subway is encouraging different markets to try their own value options. For examples, customers in San Francisco can now buy a $3.99 6-inch sub.

“Affordable food is what we’ve always stood for,” Haynes said. “It’s not just about one price point.”

So what about wacky stunt foods, so beloved by other fast-food brands such as Starbucks and Taco Bell? “Maybe off-the-menu-type products or Unicorn-type drinks at some time, but it needs to be profitable and successful for our franchisees,” Haynes said.

❚ New tastes coming: Haynes said they’re working on what’s been dubbed Firebird chicken, a spicier rotisserie-type poultry, and guajillo steak.

Plus, 200 San Diego locations are testing new sandwiches, which the chain refers to as “regional flavors” – a Steakhouse Melt (shaved steak, American cheese, onions, green peppers, spinach and Sub Spice); a California Club (oven-roasted turkey, fresh avocado and Mustard Seed Spread); a Provencal Tuna Melt (tuna, cheese, tomatoes, spinach and Provencal herbs); and an Italian Grinder (pepperoni, Genoa salami, Black Forest ham, onions, Signature Herb Garlic Oil, cracked black pepper). New beverages include Watermelon Agua Fresca and Passion Fruit Agua Fresca.

And while the large, long rolls are a key part of Subway sandwiches, the company is now experimenting with paninis in California.

Gordon said the $5 Footlong was a hit in 2007-2008 due to the recession and the healthy image the veggie-heavy subs had at a time when Americans began to care more about what they ate. Then, crickets. “That was 10 years ago. Nothing has happened at Subway essentially in 10 years,” he said.

Gordon gives Subway a thumbsup for its new wraps but advises moving away from bread and starting to serve meats shaved and stacked deli-style, if the chain wants to avoid fellow sub chain Quiznos’ downward spiral.

❚ You want how many pickles?!? They key to Subway’s continued success is underscoring customers’ ability to pick precisely what they do and don’t want on their sandwiches. “With other brands, it’s very much packaged formats. We customize. You can add as many tomatoes or olives as you want,” Haynes said. ❚ Don’t just Instagram the food: Subway restaurants are being redesigned. The bright, fresh, green palette is vegetable-inspired, and the decor overhaul for everything from freestanding drive-thru locations to the kiosks will “start in earnest” next year, Haynes said. The cost is about $40,000 for a typical 1,200square-foot store.

SUBWAY RESTAURANTS Subway is testing paninis at some California shops.