How Jersey Mike’s Was Built to Grow

Sub-sandwich franchise Jersey Mike’s was founded in 1974 as Mike’s Subs by CEO Peter Cancro when he was just 17 years old with the help of his high school football coach, Rod Smith.  Located on the Jersey Shore, Cancro and the Mike’s Subs team was one of the first shops to use the term “submarine sandwich,” a phrase not widely used by the public at the time.

After opening a few more Mike’s Subs with his wife Linda, their popularity grew tremendously. In 1987, Peter began franchising behind the name Jersey Mike’s, to highlight where the delicious sub sandwich was born.

In the past 10 years, Jersey Mike’s has grown from 400 locations to almost 2,000 across the United States. In a recent interview between Peter and QSR, QSR wrote that the franchise brand has been able to grow “through strong financials, efficient store operations, and a dedicated company culture, and has weathered the pandemic season better than most for those reasons”.

As of mid-June, after the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Jersey Mike’s year-over-year sales growth stayed the same, while several competitors and restaurant brands were down double-digit percentages. The sandwich brand, whose model predominantly relied on takeout and delivery orders already, has stayed on top of the pandemic and credits its success to its technology, specifically its point of sale (POS) systems and mobile app which have allowed for high efficiency in getting sandwiches to its customers.

Jersey Mike’s is a brand that truly believes in investing in its people, to which it credits most of its growth success. Recently, Jersey Mike’s generously fronted $75,000 per store for renovations, which totaled to about a $150 million investment.

“Ever since we started franchising, we’ve been committing to owners, and we feel it’s a true partnership. I think we have a unique approach with franchising; we feel like they’re corporate stores. We feel like the owners are part of our team,” Peter told QSR. “I looked at everybody and said, ‘We talk about putting others first before ourselves and talk about raising up together. We talk about pulling people along, not pushing. Our whole company mantra is giving, making a difference in someone’s life. If I’m going to stand up here and say that we’ve got to be all in, we’re paying for the retrofits.’”

After the announcement of the retrofits, Peter added that their team is also starting the Coach Rod Smith Ownership Program for managers and assistant managers who wish to pursue their dream of owning their own franchise. Peter told QSR they plan to develop 25 new shops this year through the program.

The initial investment to own a franchise costs between $237,419 - $766,971. Jersey Mike’s does support relationships with third-party sources that offer financial assistance for the franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, and payroll.

Jersey Mike’s grew from 430 franchise locations in 2010 to nearly 2,000 today. Their success is credited to the relationship between Peter’s corporate team and their owners. Jersey Mike’s was built to sell on this foundation and their investment into each individual franchise.