Denver-based Quiznos, which currently operates about 4,000 restaurants nation-wide, plans to open as many as 600 new stores by the end of the year, including company-owned outlets, Phoenix Business News reported.
“As a national brand, Quiznos has enjoyed success and resonated with customers across the map,” company officials said. “Quiznos will consider markets nationwide as all 600 new locations are identified and developed.”
Most Quiznos restaurants today are franchises, although the company said the 600 new locations “will include both corporate-owned stores as well as Quiznos-funded joint venture ownership opportunities for qualified entrepreneurs.”
“We have a world-class business model and our belief in that model is so strong we want to increase our corporate profitability by investing in these corporate-owned stores,” Rick Schaden, Quiznos CEO, said in a statement. “Establishing a stronger presence of Quiznos-owned stores also allows us to more closely align with our franchise owners, identifying and advancing best practices at the store level to elevate our brand’s operations overall.”
Quiznos said it recently restructured its debt “in order to fund expansion and facilitate greater flexibility for growth. This way Quiznos can “dedicate its own capital to the new store openings and invest in this positive growth momentum,” the company said.
Quiznos also is renovating its in-store design and refreshing its brand identity. About 1,100 of its outlets have been renovated so far, and another 2,000 locations are slated for upgrades over the next 12 months, Phoenix Business News reported.
In March, Quiznos announced plans to open quick-service outlets inside convenience stores. In January, the company launched a pilot program that allows potential store owners to buy a location for as little as a $5,000 down payment.
