The Subway sandwich chain is reportedly considering selling the company for $10 billion.
The plans for a sale were first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The franchise has been owned by two founding families since its inception in 1965. The sale comes amid an attempted turnaround for the company amid a worsening financial situation.
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“As a privately held company, we don’t comment on ownership structure and business plans,” Subway told the outlet when asked about a possible sale. “We continue to be focused on moving the brand forward with our transformational journey to help our franchisees be successful and profitable.”
The process is still in its early stages, and there is no clear buyer yet. The chain is expected to be bought by a combination of corporate buyers and private-equity firms.
Subway sales have been declining following a peak in 2012 at $18 billion. The decline was blamed by businessman John Chidsey on an ill-advised expansion drive.
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“In the U.S., they had a maniacal focus on development. For the longest time, Subway had no competition. There was no Jersey Mike’s, there was no Firehouse Subs. Then, all of a sudden, you have these new guys that have beautiful new restaurants, new equipment and new food. I think those things snuck up on them. Lastly, [co-founder Fred DeLuca] got sick. When he was ill, I think things drifted longer than they should have,” he said.
