Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

May 4, 2018

Subway CEO Greco to retire amid sales slump

Photo | Contributed A redesigned Subway store.
By Natalie Missakian

After 45 years, Subway’s CEO Suzanne Greco is retiring from the Milford-based sandwich chain her brother founded when she was 7.

Subway, which has been struggling to compete with a wave of new fast-casual restaurants, said this week it has elevated Chief Business Development Officer Trevor Haynes to interim CEO.

Greco will stay on until June 30 to help with the transition and remain as a senior advisor after her retirement, the company said.

Greco, who started as a sandwich artist with the company in 1973, took the helm in 2015 after her brother Fred Deluca died of leukemia.

“Subway has been part of my life since I was 7 years old. I love the brand and the company and I always will, but it’s time for me to have more balance in my life,” she said in a statement.

Her departure comes as Subway is closing hundreds of U.S. locations amid lagging sales. She told Bloomberg last week that the company plans to close 500 U.S. stores in 2018 and will focus on international growth.

Greco has introduced a string of changes at the 52-year-old company in recent months aimed at luring back customers, including a store redesign, a new loyalty program, self-order kiosks and healthier menu choices.

She has also faced pushback from some franchise owners over corporate decisions they felt were at odds with their interests, according to media reports.

In January, more than 400 franchisees objected to a plan to revive Subway’s $5 footlong in a limited-time promotion, saying it would decimate their businesses.

Prior to becoming CEO, Greco led the company’s research and development team, where she worked for more than two decades.

Natalie Missakian can be reached at news@newhavenbiz.com

 

Sign up for Enews

Most Recent

Most Recent

0 Comments

Order a PDF