Whatever Happened To Quiznos?

If you cleaned out an old paperwork drawer and found a coupon for a free sandwich from Quiznos dated from the mid-2000s, would the name ring a bell, or conjure even the ghost of a memory? Despite shutting down about 90% of its once uber-successful storefronts, Quiznos restaurants do still exist, but the franchise has certainly seen better days. At one point in time, the Quiznos franchise was booming — with close to 5,000 locations nationwide. Through a combination of high franchise fees, heavy debt, the Great Recession of 2009, a tough competitor, and bankruptcy filings, there are very few Quiznos left today.

Founded in 1981 in Denver, Colorado by chef Jimmy Lambatos and his partner Todd Disner, Quiznos began as a trailblazing sandwich shop set to rival big names like Subway. Unfortunately, by the late-2000s, the chain could barely keep a CEO in place, switching ownership five times over five years. Franchise owners would receive the keys to their new restaurants only to find out that Quiznos required all franchises to purchase food and supplies directly from Quiznos Corporate through a subsidiary Quiznos owned, American Food Distributors. This meant more money in the high-up's pockets and more expensive purchases for franchise owners, which made them angry. So angry that they began suing (and winning against) Quiznos corporate. This legal trouble put the chain into hundreds of millions of dollars of debt.

Before the lawsuits began to pile up, Quiznos made a fatal decision to sell a 49% share of the company to JP Morgan Partners. This leveraged buyout ended up costing the company hundreds of millions in debt, on top of the fact that Quiznos now also owed hundreds of millions in lawsuits. Quiznos was already struggling when the recession hit in 2009, which cost the company even more money in lost sales, and ultimately forced the chain to close over 1,000 locations.

Quiznos' longtime competitor, Subway, was another nail in the coffin. Amidst millions in debt, disgruntled franchise owners, and a recession, Quiznos was trying (and failing) to keep up with the rapid triumph of Subway's new $5 footlong. Meanwhile, Quiznos distributed coupons for free sandwiches without communicating with franchise owners. So, when customers went into a store to redeem their free sandwich, franchises either ate the cost (since Quiznos initially refused to reimburse) or refused to accept any coupons. This, understandably, caused customers to lose faith in the Quiznos brand and take their business elsewhere, probably to Subway or Firehouse Subs. In 2014, Quiznos finally filed for bankruptcy with just shy of $875 million in loan obligations. You can still find a few Quiznos locations across the nation but, where in the 2000s the company operated close to 5,000 restaurants, as of 2024 there were only about 200 remaining.