In 2007, Subway launched the $5 footlong.
But after nearly a decade of dominance, Subway sent a bizarre and sad tweet in February 2016
indicating that, just like that, the $5 footlong was history.
Here's why.
Why did the $5 footlong work in the first place?
Because our simple human brains like round numbers.
The promotion was the brainchild of Stuart Frankel, a Subway franchisee who owned two
Subway restaurants in Miami.
In 2004, he wanted to revive sales that dropped off substantially on the weekends.
He decided a promotion was in order, and since he liked round numbers, he decided to offer
footlong subs at the nice, round price of $5 including tax.
It worked, but Subway was slow to catch on to the promotional possibilities.
In 2007, though, Frankel was asked to help turn around an ailing store in Fort Lauderdale.
He introduced the $5 footlong to wild success, and soon, the popular deal was available nationwide.
"Talk about a hole in one!"
There was something awesome about the $5 footlong, and it wasn't the jingle.
That bears repeating: it definitely wasn't the jingle.
"No, no, it's five.
Five dollar."
"Five dollar footlong!"
"NO!
Then it's five dollar footlong.
It's three!"
"It's a thirty second commercial."
No, it was the simplicity of the promotion that really made it stick.
A foot long sandwich for $5.
Pretty simple and easy to remember.
"They make them, I eat them.
I understand now.
I understand sandwiches!"
So it's no wonder people were angry when it disappeared.
According to Subway's official announcement, the price of its "classic" subs was going
up to $6 to combat rising costs.
And it makes sense.
Between 2007 and 2015, cumulative inflation was about 14.3 percent, which means that what
you could buy for $5 in 2007 would have cost you $5.72 in 2015.
Consider that, and the jump from $5 footlong to $6 footlong is legitimate, if not as catchy.
If you ever wondered whether those $5 footlongs were actually a foot long, well, you're apparently
not the only one.
In 2013, Subway was actually taken to court over claims of false advertising.
Attorneys measured 17 sandwiches from local New Jersey Subway restaurants, and none of
them cracked 12 inches.
Since Subway's rolls are shipped frozen then thawed and baked on location, there was no
set method in place for making sure each sub roll really was stretched to 12 inches.
Seems simple, but making sandwiches is apparently harder than it looks.
"No, no.
Meat on the inside, bread on the outside.
Kay, take it away.
Take it away.
Take it away!"
Subway insisted that the term "footlong" was essentially an advertising gimmick instead
of an actual promise.
Still, in 2016 they finally ended up reaching a settlement.
In addition to handing over $500 to each of the original claimants, it also ended up dishing
out $520,000 in legal fees and agreeing to implement new measures across the board that
would help keep its footlongs actually a foot long.
With all those costs, it's no wonder they ended up raising the price.
The $5 footlong promotion ran for nearly a decade.
But while it started off as a fresh idea, by the end, it was just one of many ways in
which Subway had become outdated.
The chain originally achieved its market dominance as a healthy alternative to fast food chains
like McDonald's.
But while many chains have since embraced healthier food, with fresh ingredients, Subway
was content to stand pat.
Suddenly, their new ideas weren't new, they were just the industry norm.
As a result, Subway has faced hard times.
In 2017, the chain closed more than 800 stores, and shut down roughly 500 more in 2018, with
the Washington Post reporting that sales had dropped three years in a row.
Clearly, new ideas are needed.
And as great as the $5 footlong was back in the day, it's old news now.
It's a sad end for a promotion that's become so iconic, and there's a good reason it's
so well associated with the brand: it catapulted Subway to the top tier of the fast food ranks…
for a while.
The $5 footlong brought in a whopping $3.8 billion in sales in 2009 and put Subway among
the top 10 fast food chains for that year, allowing the smaller company to shoulder past
giants like Burger King and Wendy's and seize a huge portion of the market share.
But what goes up must come down.
Chances are Subway isn't even in your top 5 when it comes to deciding where to go for
lunch.
Thanks to a combination of contentment with the status quo, scandals, lawsuits, and overexpansion,
Subway's falling profits, coupled with their rising costs, ultimately spelled the end of
everyone's favorite sandwich meal deal: the $5 footlong.
Oh, and just in case it's not in your head yet:
"Five!
Five dollar!
Five dollar footlong!
Any, any any!
You're welcome!