Why Recessions Forge Great CEOs Who Think Beyond Cost-Cutting
04/15/2025
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But the CEOs who make history in downturns aren’t the ones with the deepest cuts
August 28, 2023: Subway reportedly sought $10 billion, a high price that alienated numerous potential suitors such as cafe partnerships, leaving only private equity firms to duke it out in an auction.
On Thursday, the information on the chain’s lengthy sale process, which publicly kicked off in February. Subway reportedly sought $10 billion, a high price that alienated numerous potential suitors like cafe partnerships, leaving only private equity firms to duke it out in an auction. Other reported bidders included TDR Capital and Sycamore Partners.
Subway and Roark did not announce a transaction price, but The Wall Street Journal reported that the firm’s final bid was roughly $9.6 billion.
Roark’s current portfolio includes more than a dozen restaurant chains. Subway dwarfs all of them by the number of restaurants and brings in more annual sales than all but Dunkin’.
Roark owns Dunkin’, Baskin-Robbins, Sonic, Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Jimmy John’s through the holding company Inspire Brands. Separately housed under Focus Brands, the firm owns Auntie Anne’s, Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba, McAlister’s, Moe’s Southwest Grill, and Schlotzsky’s. Roark also invested $200 million in the Cheesecake Factory during the early days of the Covid pandemic to help the struggling chain stave off insolvency.
“In essence, Roark brings more to the table than other investors would have, and while the deal closed based on cold hard cash, the outcome is a good one,” Neil Saunders, a retail analyst and managing director of GlobalData analytics, wrote in a note.
Roark plans to keep Subway as a separate entity within its portfolio, Subway CEO John Chidsey told the Journal.
Subway has been trying to turn around its business under Chidsey, who joined the company in 2019. The group has revamped its menu, recruited new franchisees, and invested in technology. In the year’s first half, its same-store sales increased 9.8%, showing that the turnaround may take hold.
“This transaction reflects Subway’s long-term growth potential and the substantial value of our brand and our franchisees around the world,” Chidsey said in a statement Thursday.
Founded in 1965 by the Fred DeLuca and Peter Buck, Subway grew from a single sandwich shop in Connecticut to a global restaurant giant.
But the CEOs who make history in downturns aren’t the ones with the deepest cuts
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