SUBWAY(R) Named #1 Worldwide Franchise Opportunity for 2009

Entrepreneur Magazine Names Brand #1 Franchise Opportunity for Incredible 16th Time in 22 Years

MILFORD, Conn., Dec. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- The SUBWAY(R) restaurant chain has once again been named the Number One Franchise opportunity for 2009 by Entrepreneur magazine in its Annual "Franchise 500" rankings. The brand was also named the Number One Global Franchise opportunity.

This is the 16th time in 22 years of rating franchises that the SUBWAY(R) chain has been recognized with the overall top honor. When the chain was first named the Number One Franchise by Entrepreneur in 1988, it had about 4,000 locations, mostly in the U.S. This year, the chain passed the 30,000 location mark, spanning 87 countries and territories around the globe, putting it only about 3,000 locations away from becoming the single largest fast food chain in the world.

The "Franchise 500" rankings are the most comprehensive franchise rankings in the world and considers many factors, including financial strength and stability, growth rate, size of the system and start-up costs.

John Musco, who has been with the brand as a developer working with franchisees for the past 32 years, said the success of the SUBWAY(R) system is linked to the amount of support available to franchisees.

"The amount of franchisee support provided throughout the whole system -- and the fact that someone can pick-up a phone and talk to a person -- makes us more personable and that kind of support is a big deal to people. Our system is designed to help, but we also give the franchisees the freedom to be their own boss, the freedom to be an entrepreneur," said John, who, along with his business partner Paul Landino, started out as franchisees in 1976.

John and Paul have spent the past 22 years as Development Agents in the SUBWAY(R) system and have helped grow the business to 416 stores in their territory, which includes parts of Connecticut and New York.

Company co-founder and President Fred DeLuca attributes the brand's success to the thousands of people -- franchisees and support personnel -- who make up what he calls "the number one franchising team in the history of the industry!"

The SUBWAY(R) team success stories includes:

• Larry Feldman, CEO of Subway Development Corporation of Washington (SDC), who opened his first SUBWAY(R) restaurant in Washington, DC in 1977 while still serving as Assistant General Council to the House of Representatives Banking and Currency Committee. Now a Development Agent for the brand, Larry has overseen the opening of 1,000 SUBWAY(R) restaurants in his territory, which covers the District of Columbia, Delaware, Virginia and most of Maryland. SDC is the chain's single largest development office in the world and, in the process of growing the brand, has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for breast cancer research. Franchisees and Development offices regularly adopt charitable and community causes. In the U.S., the SUBWAY(R) restaurant chain is a proud sponsor of the American Heart Association's American Heart Walks, Jump Rope for Heart and the START! Walking at Work Program.
• After more than 20 years in the restaurant business, Amy Cook decided to open a SUBWAY(R) restaurant in a Convenience Store in Sneads Ferry, North Carolina. This is Amy's first location, but her goal is to open several SUBWAY(R) locations in the area. Amy's store is one of about 7,000 SUBWAY(R) stores found in "non-traditional" locations -- which are locations that many brands would find impossible or impractical to fit into. Along with the more than 3,500 convenience stores, truck stops and highway rest area locations, you can also find a SUBWAY(R) restaurant in more than 1,500 Wal-Mart stores, 260 college campuses and 150 hospitals.
• Brad Harris is a Denver, Colorado, franchisee with 12 locations who started his career as a Sandwich Artist while in college. After seeing first hand what a great opportunity the brand provided, he jumped at the chance to become a franchisee himself and now says he is glad to be part of such an exciting business. Brad is one of many Sandwich Artists who have grown with the company. Sandwich Artists can be found throughout the SUBWAY(R) system. In fact, the brand's Assistant Director of Operations Steve Lawrence started his career with the brand as a Sandwich Artist.
• Helgi Helgason worked as a chef in restaurants and hotels throughout Europe for more than 20 years. In 1999, he opened his first SUBWAY(R) restaurant in Benidorm, Spain, and has since opened three more. Helgi is now a Development Agent in Spain, where he has overseen the opening of 10 SUBWAY(R) restaurants. International development represents a large area of growth for the brand, which currently has more than 8,000 international locations in 87 countries, including 1,200 locations in the United Kingdom, 600 in Germany and 200 each in Brazil and New Zealand.

The SUBWAY(R) restaurant chain is the world's largest submarine sandwich franchise, with more than 30,000 convenient locations in 87 countries. Headquartered in Milford, Connecticut, and with regional offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Brisbane, Miami, and Singapore, the SUBWAY(R) chain was co-founded by Fred DeLuca and Dr. Peter Buck in 1965.

For more information about the SUBWAY(R) chain, visit www.subway.com. For more information on the SUBWAY(R) brand's sustainability efforts, visit the Eat Fresh/Live Green page, accessible through the subway.com and subwayfreshbuzz.com web sites.

SUBWAY(R) is a registered trademark of Doctor's Associates Inc.

Website: http://www.subway.com/